


Vindictive Care

by vindictiveskeletons



Series: Prosthesis AU [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Body Dysphoria, Dancetale Papyrus - Freeform, Dancetale Sans, Dysfunctional Family, Dysfunctional Relationships, Dysphoria, Fellswap Papyrus - Freeform, G Papyrus - Freeform, G Sans - Freeform, Gen, Horrortale Papyrus, Horrotale Sans - Freeform, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, M/M, Mobtale Papyrus - Freeform, Mobtale Sans - Freeform, Mystery, Original Character Papyrus, Original Character Sans, Original Characters care for each other I swear, Original Characters turn into monsters, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Build, Somewhat, They turn into Sans and Papyrus, They're just really rough and antagonistic towards each other, Underfell Papyrus (Undertale), Underfell Sans (Undertale), Underswap Papyrus (Undertale), Underswap Sans (Undertale), Why Did I Write This?, anonymous, fellswap sans - Freeform, they still care
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-12-08
Packaged: 2021-02-23 13:27:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 106,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23845420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vindictiveskeletons/pseuds/vindictiveskeletons
Summary: There's two new skeletons in the house.Unfortunately not much of a surprise there, the machine kept malfunctioning and kept bringing in alternate versions of Sans and Papyruses into their universe. They were up to SIXTEEN SKELETONS, now eighteen with the two's newest arrival.Except... there was something off about the new skeletons. 'Visor' and 'Chine'.Sweet mercy above, these two brothers seemed to hate each other. They kept swearing at each other, calling each other names- Chine actually almost stabbed Visor! On purpose! What a toxic relationship! Even more so than Black and Mutt!Or is it? Underneath their hateful facade, they do care for each other. In another very weird but unhealthy way... That's it, everyone was going to try and help these two, as well find out more about what happened to them in the past, why they were what they were and maybe find a little love along the way.You and your brother never asked to become the alternate universe Sans and Papyrus you both created. But by fuck was it difficult to keep things together like this, now the AU Sans and Papyruses were trying to get close. Stars above have mercy on their SOULs.
Relationships: Original Character & Original Character, Papyrus/Original Character(s), Papyrus/Papyrus (Undertale), Papyrus/Sans (Undertale), Sans (Undertale) & Papyrus (Undertale), Sans (Undertale)/Original Character(s), Sans/Sans (Undertale)
Series: Prosthesis AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1941580
Comments: 311
Kudos: 719





	1. First Impressions

**Author's Note:**

> had this in mind ever since i read a fic.  
> i can't remember what the fic's title was but it had a similar ish premise. but it was just sans and not papyrus.  
> after i read that and i couldn't find it again, the idea started to mind, so here it is!  
> i've been thinking over it a lot over the past few days  
> so here it is!

* * *

_dark.  
_ _so dark.  
_ _why was it so dark?  
_ _WHERE ARE WE?  
_ _WHO ARE WE?  
_ _BROTHER WHERE ARE YOU?  
_ _right here.  
_ _i'm right here bro.  
_ _shit, what's going on? everything feels- **wrong.  
**_ _I DON'T KNOW.  
_ _**-̶̳̊-̴̬̀-̸̛͓** HELP I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON!!  
_ _I-I- I CAN'T REMEMBER WHO WE ARE!! NOT COMPLETELY!! I FEEL OFF!! DID I ALWAYS SOUND LIKE THIS?!?  
_ _shit. **shit** \- stay calm -̶̈́ͅ-̵̦̾-̶͕̈́ everything's going to be fine.  
_ _we'll- we'll think of something. just stay calm and- yeah, just- fuck. i'm sorry i don't know. i don't know what else to do.  
_ _YOU- FUCK, YEAH. WE SHOULD- STAY CALM.  
_ _go with the flow of things. it's our best i guess.  
_ _UNFORTUNATELY SO... WE SOUND FAMILIAR, BUT I DON'T REMEMBER SOUNDING LIKE THIS.  
_ _EVERYTHING SEEMS SO OFF.  
_ _yeah, yeah. it seems so weird. i don't know why.  
_ _it's hard to tell though.  
_ _everything's so dark.  
_ _i- i can't see you.  
_ _IT IS RATHER OBVIOUS THAT WE CAN'T SEE EACH OTHER WITH THIS DARKNESS.  
_ _I **HATE IT**.  
_ _fuck you. but yeah i hate it too.  
_ _DON'T STOP TALKING? PLEASE?  
_ _same with you bro. just- we'll keep talking. it's better. can't stand the darkness already, silence will make it worse.  
_ _NO SHIT.  
_ _yeah.  
_ _WHY ARE WE HERE?  
_ _i don't know.  
_ _WHY DOES EVERYTHING SEEM SO OFF AND WEIRD?  
_ _i don't know.  
_ _FUCK WHY CAN'T WE REMEMBER EVERYTHING?!  
_ _shrug.  
_ _YOU ABSOLUTE FUCKING TOOL, DID YOU JUST SAY SHRUG OUT LOUD?  
_ _you can't see me so i gotta say it.  
_ _I'D RATHER HAVE YOU SAY ALMOST ANYTHING ELSE BESIDES SHRUG.  
_ _you want me to say cunt? 'cuz i'll say it.  
_ _FUCK YOU.  
_ _fuck you too bro.  
_ _GOD- WAIT, WHAT'S THAT?  
_ _what's wh- no wait, i see it.  
_ _light.  
_ _it's light.  
_ _WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW?!  
_ _i don't- shit, hold on!  
_ _BROTHER!  
_ _bro!_

* * *

There's faint voices in the background as your consciousness boots itself right up in a painfully sluggish manner.

" _...RE THEY OKAY? SA......OUGHT TH... OVER!!_ "   
" _sorry pa...n't expe...._ "  
" _.. tch, they fu....look weird._ "  
" _MWEH! THA..'S NOT A GOOD THING TO SAY! I THINK THEY LOOK RATHER INTERESTING!!_ "

The sound isn't helping the headache rattling inside your skull, you make a rough quiet hiss as you move your limbs. You feel oddly lethargic, and strange. You feel... both lighter and heavier at the same time, a contradictory sensation as you gather your thoughts and process what was happening. You're splayed on your back, which felt really really off for some reason. But you can't focus on that right now because your awareness quickly comes back as a loud voice comes directly above you.

"YOU'RE AWAKE!" 

Instinctively, you roll away from the loud noise and quickly get to your feet and forcing your eyes to open. Your body protests and buckles under your actions but you stubbornly go with it, tense and ready despite the fact you're blinking rapidly to adjust the lighting of the room. Color fills your vision and noise fills your ears.

It's...

"what the fuck." Who said that?

" _what the **fuck**_." _You_ said that? Your voice- sounds _different_. You _feel_ different and-

That's Sans.

And Papyrus.

 _Multiple_ Sans and Papyruses. 

_Multi **verse**_ Sans and Papyruses.

You were in a large room, some sort of large machine was situated in the middle of the room. It was sparking and slightly smoking, but thankfully dealt with by a Sans- Mobtale? You can't think of anyone else wearing a suit like that. Before you was Undertale Sans, his Papyrus, Underfell Sans and Underswap Sans who apparently had been the one who'd been so loud right next to you. They all look stunned, though both Underfell and Undertale Sans looked rather tense, ready for anything you might do.

You have no idea what to do because you don't really have a clear clue on what happened. 

Swap Sans, Blue? Shook off his startled look and greeted you with a beaming smile. "HELLO THERE OTHER ME! IT'S NICE TO SEE YOU'RE AWAKE AND ALRIGHT! _ARE_ YOU ALRIGHT? DO YOU FEEL ANY PAIN ANYWHERE? I WOULD BE HAPPY TO HELP IF YOU'RE HURT!! FEEL FREE TO ASK FOR IT FROM THE MAGNIFICENT SANS! ER, WELL, YOU MAY CALL ME BLUE TO MAKE IT EASIER!" Jesus fuck, he's _loud_ and yet it totally fits him. You'd never thought- wait, hold a fuck. 

' _other me?_ '

You glance at a nearest reflective surface, which was a shiny car hood that was laying against the wall. 

You're stunned a bit on what you see.

It's Sans.

It's _you_. 

_It's the Sans you and your bro made up_.

The Sans you and your brother made up was from a makeshift world that mixed in steampunk, a bit fantasy and was outright not a good world at all. You both called that AU Prosthesis, for various reasons- mainly because both Sans and Papyrus of your created AU had mechanical prosthetics. But not the normal kind.

You look at 'your' skull, which had various scratches all over, all varying degrees of length, size, width and depth. But the worse one was the scratch- it was more like a crack at this point, that was on 'your' cheek bone and almost touched 'your' nasal bone. 'You' had dim dark blue eyelights with no pupils and a rough frown on 'your' face. There was a black scarf tucked around 'your' neck that hid the top of 'your' spine but if you unwrapped it you knew that instead of bone white it'd be bronze gold that went all the way down to 'your' tailbone. 

Prothesis Sans' spine, ' _your_ ' spine, was a metal prosthetic along with most of your skeletal ribs. You try not to think of why that was aside from the fact it was from you and your brother's mischievous and admittedly dark and horrible imagination...

Over 'your' black scarf was a dark leather coat that looked both old but stylish, it was ragged at the seams and even had a few holes at the tail end of it. The leather coat had silver buttons and gears and a generous amounts of pockets that you vaguely knew the contents of. Underneath the coat was a dark brown leather body harness that wrapped around 'your' torso and chest, acting somewhat like armor and holster for a few gadgets and items that were both hidden and not on it, and under that was a simple button up gray shirt. At the end of your sleeves were thick brown leather gloves that had a certain design of circuitry on the palms and fingers, the gloves were strapped underneath your sleeves and were semi-attached to the harness you had on.

Around 'your' waist was tight brown belt that held up your baggy-looking buckled steampunk-looking pants that were tucked into your equally steampunk-looking murky silver and black colored boots. That had tiny pockets on them. _Tiny pockets-_ looking at 'yourself' now, you wonder what you'd been thinking giving Sans this get up. It seemed cool in before, but now... Okay it still seemed a little cool but you can't help but feel a little bit ridiculous now that you were wearing everything. 

Though that ridiculousness drains as you consider your situation with a vague sense of horror and confusion.

You were Sans- _no._

You were _in_ the body of Prosthesis Sans, the Sans you and your brother created just a few months ago. It was one of the projects that you actually worked on both together without that much argument. 

This wasn't right, you weren't supposed to be in this body you were supposed to be- 

Supposed to be...

Who were you supposed to be?

_**-̶̳̊-̴̬̀-̸̛͓** _

Wait, where-

"HEY, ARE YOU OKAY?"

Your... eyelights snap towards Blue, looking very concerned and soft. You... holy fuck how the hell can he actually exist? "i- processing this shit. don't mind me, i'm a'ight." You mutter to him, you... need to keep calm. You can't afford to anything irrational- there are many powerful skeletons in here, and though you _may_ be included, you'd rather avoid confrontation. "so," you continue, looking over to the other Sans, Mobtale has even joined the group, "multiverse theory?" 

No _shit_ multiverse theory.

Underfell Sans scoffed, "no _shit_ it's multiverse theory." Ah, great minds think alike. 

"great." You say dryly, "just- _great_." You pinched your nasal bone on instinct, pausing as you see the palm of your gloves. Right, you still had that on. And everything else. 

Blue smiles, no, he _beams_ at you and you're once again wondering on how he can physically exist. "IT IS GREAT! WE ALL GET TO MEET EACH OTHER! THOUGH UNFORTUNATELY WE'RE ALL QUITE UH- STUCK HERE, FOR THE MOMENT. SO I'M VERY SORRY FOR YOU AND YOUR BROTHER BUT I HOPE YOU CAN ENJOY YOUR STAY HERE!" He said with an apologetic look on his face.

"it's fi- wait, my brother?" You repeated flatly but your mind is whirling. Your brother, your brother was here? Fuck, was he-

"YES! HE'S RIGHT HERE! HE'S QUITE ALRIGHT!" Undertale Papyrus exclaims, on his knees besides a certain figure laying on the ground. "HE'S STILL UNCONSCIOUS THOUGH! OR, I THINK HE IS." He says with clear worry as he looks down to 'his alternate'. 

Well shit, there he was. Prosthesis Papyrus, who was most likely your brother.

If not...

Shit, this was going to be rough whether or not he was your actual brother. 

But it'd be even more so complicated if he was the actual Prosthesis Papyrus. 

You frown and make your way to your brother, passing the other Sans to look down at your brother. 

Prosthesis Papyrus... he was the regular Papyrus' height, maybe an inch or two shorter without his dark red leather boots. On his skull, was a visor that covered most of his front face, gear-shaped bumps at the temporal bone that were welded and grafted on to the bone. You ignore the feeling of dread in the pit of your stomach at the sight of the visor. It was a cool addition to the design of Prosthesis Papyrus but you know why they're really there. 

Prosthesis Papyrus's frontal bone of the skull didn't exist. It was caved in like Horrortale Sans' skull, only instead of the side of his skull, Papyrus' skull was caved in from his forehead to his nasal bone. That visor covered that hole completely, not to mention give him the ability to see. Without the visor, Prosthesis Papyrus... _your brother_... was entirely blind. 

Ignoring that tidbit for now, you look over the rest of him. 

He wore a dark brown leather steampunk jacket with gold buckles and buttons on it. He had a pair of dark red metallic gauntlets around his sleeves, which were over thin but very durable black gloves. Underneath his jacket was a different leather harness, it was more like armor than your own harness, and had less hidden gadgets on it. Underneath that harness was a light orange button up shirt. Over his jacket around his waist was a more impressive belt, it had bigger pouches and more tools on it than you had from underneath your coat. 

His pants were more form fitting, but around his legs were some more leather buckles that had a few hidden tools in them. 

You look over him, see how his visor was completely black. The screen showing nothing but your reflection and just reminding you of your situation.

Lucky bastard, still being unconscious while you were conscious. 

Time to pop that bubble and have him suffer reality with you. Even if he wasn't _your_ brother, which you actually hope he was, having him awake would be better for everyone. Especially you. 

"yo dipshit, time to wake up." You say loudly, nudging your brother's shoulder with your boot quite rudely. You don't see the startled shock on everyone else's faces as you crouch and clutch the lapels of his jacket and start to shake him rather violently. "wake-up-al-read-y!" There's a whisper of ' _shit not again_ ' in the background but you ignore it in favor of watching with a neutral look on your face as the visor boots up. 

The black screen glowed slightly, digital orange symbols flashed over it, all in wingdings that merely spelled 'LOADING-MAGIC CONNECTING- VISION SYSTEM ACTIVATING...' 

As your brother? Groans, the symbols disappear and two orange digital eyelights appeared, though they were 'closed' on the screen, digital eyebrows appeared as they appeared to furrow. The eyelights blink open on the visor screen, "Wha..." He moans quietly, disgruntled and confused. 

"rise and shine dumbass." You say with a semi-cruel smirk, inwardly relieved to see him waking up. "better get up before i dunk your fat ass with hot water again." Fun times those were, but this'll make sure that this was either _your_ brother or actually Prosthesis Papyrus. You've dunked your brother with hot ass water before, you're pretty sure the Sans and Papyrus you both made in the Prosthesis AU have ever waken each other with cold or hot water.

The digital eyes snapped open and immediately glared at him as he snarled, "DON'T YOU DARE YOU BITCH I WILL BREAK YOUR FUCKING ARM." His fist instinctively lashes out but you cackle as you let go of him and lean away to dodge. There's hidden relief in your cackle, that's him! It's your brother! You grin widely as your brother immediately straightens and sits up, eyes wide though soon they disappear and an orange exclamation mark appears on the screen instead to convey his alarm. 

"g'mornin' to you too princess." You say sarcastically as you get to your feet, shoving your hands into your pockets. "we're in another universe, looks like the multiverse theory's true and shit. i can hear multiple people cheer from beyond the wall." You drawl, and you wish that the others weren't here. So that you could _actually_ talk with your brother, talk on how you were both in the wrong bodies, that everything they considered fictional was now real.

But for now, you hope your brother catches on to just act natural. 

You'd both talk later on, when you were in private.

Speaking of the others however, you glance to them, and they're giving you weird looks. Even Blue and Undertale Papyrus weren't smiling at the moment. Your brother's exclamation mark disappears and his digital eyes were back, furrowed once more. "IF ONLY THEY COULD DROWN OUR YOUR TERRIBLE VOICE." He tells you as he tries to stand once more, pausing when Papyrus offers his hand towards him. After a moment he hesitantly accepts the gesture and you scoff at him. As if he needed help to stand. 

"i could say the same to you. bitch." 

"BASTARD."

Before you both could delve into a familiar round of insults aimed at each other, Blue interrupts, a smile back on his face though it didn't reach his eyes this time. "UH, EXCUSE ME? PERHAPS WE SHOULD TALK A BIT MORE ON WHAT SHOULD BE DONE NOW. ALSO, I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE BOTH TAKING THIS SO WELL! WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME UPSTAIRS AND GET SOMETHING TO DRINK AND EAT? SOME TEA AND COOKIES PERHAPS?"

Papyrus beams, "A SUPERB IDEA BLUE! COME, LET'S GO UPSTAIRS AND HAVE A CALM CONVERSATION ABOUT WHAT NEXT TO DO AND EXPLAIN MORE TO OUR SITUATION!!" He nudged your brother frowns, you mirror your frown before shrugging. Might as well.

"yeah sure, let's do that."

"MIGHT AS WELL."

With that, you all leave what apparently had been the basement of the house. Which was less of a house and more of a goddamn mansion, how convenient since apparently there were like sixteen skeletons already living on the premises including the original. Adding you and your brother, that'd be eighteen. 

You... don't know how to think about that right now.

You weren't supposed to be in Sans' body. Much less the Sans from the AU you and your brother worked on. 

And you had the faint feeling you hadn't given a very good first impression towards the others.

...

Oh well, no choice but to move forward.

But you're really looking forward in talking with your brother, alone, later on.

* * *

Sans eyed the newest skeleton pair that came from another unfortunate failure of the machine. 

At the beginning it had just been himself and his brother, they didn't even have the mansion at first. More content to live in a comfortable house that they'd gotten together. Though they had more than enough money to get something bigger, but they were more than fine with the house they first started in on the surface. 

And then Sans just had to haul the damn machine back home and tinker with it once again. He couldn't help it, with the fact they were on the surface once more, his motivation actually spiked and in a fit of 'brilliance' Sans came back for the machine from their original home in Snowdin and started to work on it again. 

Big mistake.

The contraption failed and exploded, but in that explosion not only was the multiverse theory proven true, it brought _three_ pairs of proof with it. A swapped version of his brother and he in terms of personality and style, a more violent, red-wearing and edgy version of himself and Papyrus and finally... a pair that came straight out of a human horror movie. 

Things were chaotic back then, questions coming up, struggling to get answers in the air- god, it got even more chaotic when the horror movie brothers revealed their past. It caused a lot of tension back then, but now? It was... tolerable. Crooks and Axe, the 'horror' brothers lived on the property but they were on a cottage near the mansion rather than the actual mansion itself. 

After the chaos, everything settled to a... well, it wasn't exactly peaceful but they worked it out. Everyone took up nicknames to differentiate themselves, being named the same thing would have been, and had actually been frustrating. Even Sans himself had taken a nickname, 'Classic'. He liked it enough, this _was_ his universe after all. Papyrus, his Papyrus, shortened his name to 'Pyrus'. 

Swap brothers took to Blue and Stretch, the edgier bros took up Red and Noir, finally the horror brothers got Crooks and Axe. 

It was cramp in their old house with six other skeletons around. Not to mention the fact that Red, Noir, Crooks and Axe were more tense and guarded with their surroundings. They'd been in a neighborhood with a fair amount of humans, which made things tense for them. Red and Noir eventually mellowed out but with Crooks and Axe, they at least made the admittedly valiant effort to not stare at any humans. 

They thankfully didn't have to go back to their human-eating ways, what with food being an abundance on the surface now and was easily acquired. 

That aside, he, Stretch, Red and Axe made quick work in trying to repair the machine and getting everyone back home. Though Axe was had been reluctant to do so, Sans was sure he only did it because Crooks wanted him to help the rest of them.

The old house was cramped but they made it work, even thinking of moving to somewhere else bigger since tension was building up with how crowded things felt in the house with eight skeletons in total. 

And then the second explosion went off while they were trying to repair the machine, not only bringing in more skeletons into the mix but almost completely destroying the machine.

Three more pairs came, a swapped version of Red and Noir, another pair of what seemed to be him and Papyrus but turned out to be really damn good dancers.

Settling the four of them was still chaotic but at least it was somewhat easier to deal with them. From there, Swap Red took up the nickname of Black while his Papyrus... was content with Mutt for some odd reason that Sans was originally concerned for but settled when Mutt said he really didn't mind the nickname. Much preferring it anyway. Dance him settled on Hop, while his Papyrus jumped to Tango. 

And from there, it really was decided that their house was totally cramped. Twelve skeletons under one modest roof? Nope, it was already crowded before, then it was just suffocating. So quickly, they all decided to move to a much bigger place. It took a while, and there was a few arguments on how big it would actually be and where it would be, but it was decided to be a giant mansion. There was more than enough room to house them all and then some. Sans had hoped that the 'and then some' wouldn't come to happen but Papyrus had made the arguable point of 'just in case'.

His brother was right, the just in case was definitely and unfortunately true because after they moved into the new mansion home and repaired the machine _again_. It brought in two more pairs of skeletons. _Again_.

At least there wasn't the machine hadn't exploded or destroy itself. 

In came G, Green, Skull and Bones. 

G and Green were... complicated skeletons, their pasts... were something they kept close to their chests. But they all suspected on what had happened to them anyway.

Skull and Bones on the other hand came from a universe where it was the 1920s apparently, and they were part of a gang, a mafia-mob or something. They were certainly surprised to be brought to the 'future'.

But anyway, there were now sixteen skeletons all in all in his universe. Fourteen more than it should, Sans was admittedly getting really tired about it. 

Still, they continued to work on the machine because they had to. Thankfully the workload wasn't that bad, not with how there were more hands on board. It was quicker to get the machine repaired and hopefully fully fixed.

...

Until today that is.

Something malfunctioned. _Again_. 

And there were new skeletons. _Again_.

But thankfully, one, the machine wasn't that damaged or as damaged as before and there was only one pair of brothers that was now going to stay in the mansion.

And they were _strange_.

The new Sans -they really need to choose nicknames for them soon- was surprisingly calm with the newest situation, though that could always be him saving the breakdown and remaining calm in light of everything. G and a few others had done that so it wasn't that strange. But... he was... _rough_ with his brother, his Papyrus. 

Shit, was this going to be another complicated relationship like Red, Noir, Black and Mutt? 

Only...

They didn't seem to be like them. Red and Mutt were accommodating and more caring to their brothers compared to their newest counterpart. And at least their relationship got better over the time they spent here. Sans couldn't imagine doing the same to his Papyrus- and that Papyrus had _swore back_. So casually. Which wasn't that much of a surprise, even his Papyrus swore but the tone of voice and the way he so casually swore back jarred him for some reason.

But at least he had a cool screen mask thing? He wonders on why he's wearing it, and what kind of world that he and his Sans came from. They seem to dress heavy, and admittedly kind of cool with those buckles, gears and such. He thinks he's seen the fashion type before, but Sans couldn't remember exactly what it was or where he felt like he remembered.

With how his brother was nudging them to sit on the couch, they both sat as far from each other he noted with a slight frown, while Blue went to the kitchen to fetch some tea and cookies. 

There was a slight tension between the two of them that was easily ignored by his brother, "OKAY! FIRST THINGS FIRST! TO KEEP THINGS CLEAR AND NOT CONFUSING- WOULD YOU MIND THINKING OF A SORT OF NICKNAME WE CAN CALL YOU? WITH HOW WE'RE ALL NAMED SANS AND PAPYRUS WE DECIDED TO HAVE A NAMING SYSTEM TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR EVERYONE HERE! I AM THE GREAT PYRUS!" Papyrus exclaimed with his usual bright grin before he pointed at Sans. "AND MY BROTHER THERE HAS ADORNED THE MONIKER OF 'CLASSIC'."

Smiling lazily, Sans offered a small but predictably lazy smile at the two, "hey there." 

"YOU'VE ALREADY MET BLUE! HIS BROTHER IS NAMED STRETCH! WHO IS, NOT HERE AT THE MOMENT UNFORTUNATELY." Papyrus sighed before turning over to Red who briefly startled before scowling. 

The red and black clad skeleton sighed in irritation, "sup, i'm red. my bro's noir, he ain't here right now either." 

Skull chuckled, "guess it's my turn, hey there. i'm skull, my bro's called bones. i actually don't really know where my bro is right now, but he should be somewhere in the house, probably with tango in the dance room." The mob skeleton said thoughtfully. He probably was, Bones had gotten along with Tango really well and wanted to learn dancing. Tango was more than ecstatic as a result. 

"I THINK THEY'RE IN THE DANCE ROOM YEAH." Blue said aloud as he came back with a large tray of tea and cookies, setting it on the table. "TANGO IS ANOTHER PAPYRUS BY THE WAY, HIS BROTHER'S NAME IS HOP! THEY BOTH REALLY LIKE DANCING AND AMAZINGLY ENOUGH THEIR MAGIC INVOLVES A LOT OF DANCING SO NO WONDER!" 

The blue-eyed Sans with the coat blinked, looking interested and curious, was it about the dancing part? "huh, how many skeletons are here anyway?" He asks, ah. 

"about sixteen. now that you two are here, eighteen." Red gruffed, taking his usual seat after snatching a cookie or two from the tray. He avoided the tea though, he was more of a coffee guy. Sans was too, but he accepted the tea cup that his brother offered. 

Mask Papyrus frowned, "THAT IS A LOT OF SKELETONS." He said absentmindedly, nodding and smiling his gratitude to Blue when he accepted the tea offered to him.

His Sans scoffed, "no shit sherlock." He drawled, tone thick with sarcasm. He refused the tea and like Red, took a cookie from the tray. "

Rolling his eyes, Mask Papyrus ignored him in favor of sipping his tea, "NO WONDER YOU WANT US TO THINK OF A NICKNAME... WELL, MIGHT AS WELL GO WITH THE OBVIOUS, YOU MAY CALL ME VISOR. IT'S RATHER NICE TO MEET YOU ALL." Mas- _Visor_ smiled, the digital eyes on his screen closing to express his emotions. Really cool gadget. 

Sans, Skull and Red share a snort while Papyrus and Blue beamed at him. 

Visor's brother on the other hand? He scoffed, "'course you'd go for something so obvious... call me chine." 

Visor snorted in turn, "SAYS THE POT TO THE KETTLE. YOU CHOSE SOMETHING OBVIOUS AS WELL." He accused, though Sans was frowning, what was obvious about Chine? Did he mean the backbone? 

Chine shrugged, sticking a blue ectoplasmic tongue at Visor who scoffed at him, "CHILDISH."

"killjoy."

Blue cleared his throat, interrupting them both, "WELL!! IT'S RATHER NICE TO MEET YOU BOTH CHINE AND VISOR! I, THE MAGNIFICENT BLUE WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME YOU TO THE SKELETON HOUSE! YOU'RE FREE TO TAKE ONE OF THE NUMEROUS FREE ROOMS WE HAVE IN THE MANSION! THOUGH THERE IS A COTTAGE ON THE PROPERTY IF YOU WANT TO STAY SOMEWHERE A BIT SMALLER, BUT CROOKS AND AXE, ANOTHER PAIR OF BROTHERS, ARE LIVING THERE SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO GET THEIR PERMISSION." 

"dibs on the cottage." Chine immediately said, surprising everyone except Visor who digitally rolled his eyes. "looks like you're staying in the big ass mansion, congrats bastard." He told Visor with a smirk.

"THE COTTAGE IS BIG ENOUGH FOR FOUR-" Papyrus tried to tell Chine only for Visor to interrupt, "IT'S FINE PYRUS. I'D RATHER STAY HERE ANYWAY. IT'S FOR THE BEST." 

That...

That did not seem right. What pair of Sans and Papyrus wanted to split instead of stay in the same place? Sure, he and Papyrus had different rooms but they were right across each other. Even the other skeletons slept near their brothers, unwilling to stay away for so long due to brotherly love and sibling protectiveness. 

But this? They were willing to part and stay in separate _buildings_? Even Mutt and Black stayed in close rooms. 

"IF... IF YOU'RE SURE." Papyrus said with a small concerned frown. Sans knew that his brother was thinking the same thing as he was.

There was something seriously wrong and off between these two brothers.

* * *

Sitting down on the luxurious red couch of the Skeleton House. You have no idea what the fuck happened but you're almost entirely sure it was your brother's fault. Or rather, ' _Chine's_ ' fault.

Seriously, Chine?

You ignored the fact that you're nitpicking his name was kind of hypocritical, but at least he could have gone for something cooler like Rachis or Ridge- ugh, maybe it was fitting that your brother ~~_his name, what was his name? His real actual name?? **What was yours?**_~~ became Sans. And hey, you got to be Papyrus. 

Even if using a visor to see was kind of weird. Everything was realistic, as it should be. But the moment you'd take off the thing on your face, you'd be blind. Which would be unfortunate ~~_and terrifying_~~ for you, but you'd have to eventually take it off. Prosthesis Papyrus had to take it off after a set amount of time, and it had to stay off for a while too. The longer you keep the visor on, the longer you have to keep it off. 

Wearing the thing indefinitely was impossible, it drains magic on a constant basis, directly linked to the soul. Your soul. You 'close' your eyes and take a deep breath and smile at Pap-Pyrus. "YES, WE'RE SURE."

"never been more sure in our lives." 

You and Chine couldn't sleep near each other at a simultaneous time.

Damn you and your brother's imagination and need for angst.

At least Chine's mechanical spine was less of a hassle... if a bit more terrifying. 

Oh fuck, you were Prosthesis Papyrus and you had to deal with that.

And your brother was Prosthesis Sans, and he had to deal with your visor.

Not even a full day as a Papyrus in a new alternate universe and you already dreaded and regretted everything.

You hoped you both could do each other just fine...

Oh who were you kidding, you'd break each other's arm by tomorrow. Or a bone at least.

...

Would your brother sing just for tonight?

Later. Ask later. 

Right now, you have to act like nothing was wrong.

Otherwise everything would go wrong.

* * *


	2. Continuous Concerns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another chapter out  
> gradually building up Prosthesis AU

* * *

You have to wonder on what kind of tea that Blue and Pyrus have served you, it's smooth and creamy, it smells really nice and you can easily find yourself getting addicted to it. You were always a tea guy compared to your brother, who was just rudely ignoring the tea and focusing on the cookies. You don't exactly blame him but he should really try the tea. 

"so, what now? we got our names, hopefully our state of residence, what do we do?" Your brother asks, which was a legitimate question. What _were_ you going to do now? 

You honestly have no clue, you're a displaced human in the body of a magical skeleton from a universe you made up along with your brother in one the rare moments you totally got along with. Prosthesis was one of the things you both could be proud of, but right now you were starting to doubt that for multiple reasons. One of them was the fact that you were now partially disabled, you were blind without your visor, something that you would need to take off at some point. You don't exactly know when...

Oh never mind, you needed to take off your visor in about an hour or so. So says the timer that appeared at the corner of your vision, you almost forgot the visor could do that. It could do many things, and your doubt ebbs away to excitement as you consider the fact that you could manipulate _magic_ now. You could do, _actual_ magic- though soon the excitement drops once more into doubt.

 _Could_ you do magic now? Maybe, but could you do it _well_?

You were in Prosthesis Papyrus' body. You had his body, his clothes, his gadgets, his tools and items- but did you have his skills? His memories? Could you pull off the required maintenance on Chine's spine and bones? Could _Chine_ do the maintenance on your visor and cultivate your magic? Your gadgets? Tools?

Fuck-

"WELL," Thankfully Pyrus' voice interrupts your steadily panicking inner thoughts and you hang on to his words, totally not distracting yourself from your hidden predicament. "IT'S HONESTLY QUITE UP TO YOU CHINE, VISOR. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO ASK ALPHYS FOR A SET OF IDENTITY DOCUMENTS AND IDS FOR YOU, SO IF YOU WISH TO PURSUE A JOB OR PASSION THAT REQUIRES ANY IDENTIFICATION, YOU MIGHT HAVE TO WAIT A WHILE UNTIL ALPHYS GIVES IT TO US FOR US TO GIVE TO YOU." He said thoughtfully. 

Blue beamed at you and Chine, you're honestly taken back on how both he and Pyrus were so... optimistic and energetic. Imagining it was one thing, but experiencing it for yourself was another. Your brother said you were energetic yourself but you were fair you weren't as optimistic nor this positive. You're almost jealous. "SINCE WE'RE ON THE SURFACE YOU CAN GO ALMOST ANYWHERE! ALMOST ANYWHERE SINCE YOU'LL NEED SOME MONEY TO ACTUALLY GO ANYWHERE. WE'LL PROVIDE YOU WITH FREE FOOD AND SHELTER AND MAYBE SOME CLOTHES IF YOU WANT BUT ANYTHING ELSE YOU'LL NEED TO WORK FOR." He says and though he was smiling his tone was firm. So he wasn't just a ray of pure sunshine then.

Not bad.

"FAIR ENOUGH." You nod, thinking about it. "IF WE DO NEED ANYTHING ELSE BUT DON'T HAVE THE MONEY YET, ON THE PROMISE OF RETURNING SAID MONEY CAN WE ASK FOR A LOAN?" 

Sa-Classic shrugs then nods after a bit, "but if ya don't make or return the money then anythin' we buy for you gets taken back and you really have to work for it then." He tells you and Chine who nods back in understanding. Very fair. 

"sounds good." Your brother says aloud, looking thoughtful. "you said there were sixteen skeletons, the other four, who are they?" Good question, who were the other skeletons in the house? Which AU were they from? 

"well we told you about our bros, and of hop, tango, crooks 'n axe." Skull hummed, "then ya got black 'n mutt, they're the swapped version of red and his bro an' finally ya got g and green." 

So the AUs here were Underswap, Underfell, either Fellswap or Swapfell, Mobtale, Dancetale, Horrotale, along with Gaster!Sans and Gaster!Papyrus, as far as you know. You won't actually know until you meet them all. 

You already have the feeling that you were in for a wild ride, this was just confirming it. "I SEE, WHO WAS THE THE PAIR THAT CAME BEFORE MY BROTHER AND I?" You question, you don't get why Pyrus is perking but focus more on his answer.

"AH! WELL G, GREEN, SKULL AND BONES CAME BEFORE YOU. BEFORE THEM WAS TANGO, HOP, BLACK AND MUTT AND LASTLY BEFORE THEM WAS BLUE, STRETCH, RED, NOIR, CROOKS AND AXE! YOU AND YOUR BROTHER ARE ACTUALLY THE FIRST ARRIVALS THAT HAVE COME ON YOUR OWN WITHOUT ANYONE ELSE." He tells you, which is... Interesting to say the least.

The rest came with others, was that a coincidence or were you and your brother just unfortunate? Well, you certainly were unfortunate since you were stuck in a body that wasn't yours but still, this just added into everything. Another topper to the pile of ' _why and how_ ' pile that was starting to grow shortly have you awaken to a supposedly fictional world.

"i'm sure you'll meet everyone later on." Skull says, peering at you and Chine, "everyone's currently doin' their own thing but we all usually gather together for dinner at night. 'specially if there's new skels in the house." Ah, alright. That makes sense.

There's an awkward silence that follows the information, you don't know what to ask next. And it doesn't seem like your brother knows either, just looking off into the distance with a cookie stuffed into his mouth. You yourself, sip a bit more at your tea at a leisurely pace. This was good tea...

And though your 'eyes' seemed close, you can still see them, Pyrus, Blue, Classic, Skull and Red. You see how they're giving each other awkward but knowing glances, but keeping up the pretense of being calm and relaxed. It would only be a matter of time, until someone said something to break the awkwardness.

"so..." Red started, sockets narrowed and a slightly suspicious frown on his face. "what was it like in your universe? you both don't seem shocked we're on the surface." He motions to the open windows that depicted the beautiful outside world. Complete with a good view of the sky above and the lovely front garden. 

Chine makes the show of furrowing his eyes, "yeah? why?" You both know this, they were going to ask about the state of your world. 

"so the monsters in your universe weren't sealed underground after the human war?" classic asks, looking between the two of you, you wonder if he's feeling a bit envious. Red certainly seems a bit envious, his scowl darkening a bit. Skull was unaffected, since his universe's 'Underground' wasn't the same, his species weren't sealed away. They were mafiaso, mobs, gangs, hitmen, assassin- it was the 1920s and crime was afoot underneath the normalcy of each city. 

You share a look with your brother, "NO." You answer, voice quiet as you 'looked' down to your nearly empty tea cup. "IS THAT WHAT HAPPENED HERE? FOR MAJORITY OF THE UNIVERSES?" You ask, Chine makes a quiet swear. 

You see the other skeletons exchange looks of confusion and slight concern, "UM, YES. MOST OF THE UNIVERSES THAT WE'VE COME FROM HAVE HAD OUR SPECIES SEALED UNDERNEATH A MOUNTAIN CALL EBOTT. DID THAT NOT HAPPEN TO YOU? I THINK ONLY SKULL'S UNIVERSE ISN'T SET IN THE UNDERGROUND. NOT TECHNICALLY? THERE UNDERGROUND EXISTS FOR THEM BUT IN A DIFFERENT WAY?" Blue questions more than explains, looking towards Skull for confirmation. 

The big-boned skeleton nodded, "yeah, we all live in cities on the surface. the undergrounds... a different thing in my bro and i's universe."

"BUT AS YOU CAN SEE IN OUR UNIVERSE WE ARE FREED FROM OUR UNDERGROUND WITH THE HELP A DEAR FRIEND OF OURS!" Pyrus exclaimed happily. 

"so that's one outcome for the war huh?" Chine says with a convincingly dark look on his face. He snatches another cookie from the plate, the last one in fact, he looks at it. "to answer y'er question. no, we ain't sealed in the underground like the rest of you. but from what you said, maybe we will, who knows..." 

There's confusion on all the skeleton's faces, but it clicks in their head as you lift your cup and continue for your brother. "IN OUR UNIVERSE, THE 'HUMAN WAR' IS GOING ON. THE WAR HAS BEEN HAPPENING FOR QUITE A FEW YEARS NOW." You almost snort at their stunned and growing look of horrified surprise, almost. You don't because the topic isn't that funny. That's right.

The era that Prosthesis was set in was a war era, a veritable battle between humans and monsters... Actually that wasn't that accurate, it was a war between countries rather than species. You decide to tell that, "THOUGH CALLING IT 'HUMAN WAR' WOULD BE WRONG, MORE OF A 'WORLD WAR'. HUMAN AND MONSTERS WORK TOGETHER, IT'S NOT PERFECT BUT EVERY COUNTRY HAS BOTH HUMAN AND MONSTERS EMPLOYED IN THEIR RANKS FOR THE WAR. SOME LESS HUMAN OR MONSTERS, SOME MORE, IT ALL VARIES. BUT OUR COUNTRY OF MONIDUS IS PARTICIPATING IN A WAR THAT INVOLVES VARIOUS OTHER COUNTRIES. THE MAIN ENEMY BEING ADVERSIA, A COUNTRY AIMING FOR WORLD DOMINATION." You and your brother had thought it would be interesting, to set the era of a world-scale war, Prosthesis was partially a war AU. The monsters weren't sealed underground, they thrived on the surface but faced life in the same way of humans, if a bit more subdued and kindly. But they were still fallible beings with their own agendas. 

War was inevitable, and interesting in a story perspective. 

However now that you and your brother were in the bodies of Prosthesis Papyrus and Sans, who lived in a war-torn generation, you were going to experience the consequences of your actions. 'Your' 'new' body was incomplete and scarred, and without the visor, you were a blind disabled skeleton. Not entirely weak however, that wasn't how you and your brothers wrote Papyrus and Sans... but would that apply to you?

You don't know.

But the weight of your sins crawled on both your backs.

* * *

Despite from a generally violent universe, Red knew only a fragment of war, oh he and his brother knew violence like the back of their hands and were one of the ones who had the largest LVs in the skeleton home, not _the_ largest but still. It actually kind of ticked him and his bro off that they weren't top dogs but life was life, and they both understood that and that in other universe there were moments of violence that required action. 

Black and Mutt were in the same boat of them, however Skull and Bones? They were part of a gang, _they_ participated in war. Somewhat. 'Turf war' more specifically, they were confined within the cities and gangs, that kind of war. That happened a few times back in their universe too, but not on the scale of what Skull and Bones had been in.

And apparently even they couldn't compare to the war that _Chine_ and _Visor_ were in. 

Fuck, learning about the World Wars in the past human history while monster were sealed underground had been no short of _horrifying_. The millions of deaths and the weapons that were created for the war- and this had happened _twice_ among humans! Countries against countries, humans against humans- fuck, and this was the _Classic's_ universe. Who the fuck knows what happened to the humans in his and his bro's universe! Where things were more violent and shit.

He and his bro were _fine_ with battles, encounters and violent shit but war? That was... that was fucking terrifying. 

He could only imagine the shit that happened there. 

But Chine and Visor? They didn't have to imagine anything.

Suddenly the scuffs, scratches on their skulls had a darker meaning to it, the crack on Chine's cheek and the fact that Visor was wearing some mask-screen visor thing- that had a new outlook.

Were they part of the fighting? Part of the army? Or were they in something else? Their clothes were kind of cool to look at, were they uniforms in their universe? Something else? He had no fucking idea, he should ask. But even he knew not to ask about sensitive shit like this, he and Papyrus were still a bit iffy whenever the others asked about shit in their universe. With the rare exceptions from select skeletons, especially Mutt and Black because they rarely asked since things were similar enough.

Visor's 'eyes' were still closed, sipping the tea from his cup while Chine was looking at a particularly interesting spot on the curtain, munching on the last cookie. Red had been aiming for it, but then he learned that the human-monster war was still going on for these two brothers but on a far more larger and more complicated scale. Chine could have the last cookie for that.

"I... I SEE..." Red could see how upset both marshmallow-like skeletons Blue and Pyrus, the concern on their faces were clear and palpable. "UH-" Pyrus was struggling too think of something else to say, what else could they say to that?

Chine interrupts though, thumbing off the crumbs off his face. "yo, so do you mind if one of you introduces me to uh- crooks an' axe right? i'd like to talk with 'em about housin' and shit." He asks, standing up and masking the previously grim look on his face with an easy going facade. "the sooner we talk the sooner i settle my ass away from this shitstain." He motions to his brother, it strikes Red then, had their relationship deteriorated somehow because of the war? Why? Even though something like _war_ he thought that he and his brother would stand strong. 

Apparently not. "RIGHT BACK AT YOU BASTARD." Visor replies with a scoff, setting down his now empty cup. "I'D ALSO LIKE TO FIND OUT WHERE I WILL SLEEP AS WELL, WHICH ROOM WILL BE MY NEW ROOM?" He asks, digital orange eyes looking at each of them.

"OH. OH! UH- I'LL SHOW YOU THE OPEN ROOMS WE HAVE! YOU CAN CHOOSE FROM ANY ONE OF THEM!!" Blue bounced back from his horrified concern, though Red knew that the energetic Sans would no doubt keep an eye on both brothers. "FOLLOW ME!"

Eyeing Chine, Red grunts and stands. "i'll take you to crooks an' axe. you want to meet them here or actually go to their place?" He asks, looking at Chine who blinks in slight surprise before standing up and giving him an easy grin. 

"i won't mind actually goin' to their place... if they don't mind that is." Chine adds in, not giving Visor a look as Blue starts to lead him towards the stairs. Did he really not care about his own brother? There were complicated relationships in the skeleton house, he and Papyrus had been... _rough_ to say the least at the start but they'd manage to get better, somewhat reluctantly but even then at least they both cared for each other. 

"BE SURE TO TELL CROOKS AND AXE ABOUT THE FEAST TONIGHT! TO COMMEMORATE CHINE AND VISOR'S ARRIVAL!" Pyrus exclaims at him as Red motions Chine to follow him.

"yeah yeah, i will." Fishing out his phone, Red sent a text to the horror brothers in advance, telling them about the new arrivals and how one of them wanted to bunk with them. 

It doesn't take long for Axe to reply, Red would probably be annoyed by the simple 'k' reply that was sent back if it weren't for the fact he'd probably do the same. 

Well they _were_ Sans after all...

"axe doesn't mind, doesn't look like his bro mind either. c'mon, it ain't far from the mansion." Red tells Chine, leading him through the living room, halls, past the other rooms- their mansion was fucking huge, but hey, all the more space for all of them. 

Red glanced back at him as they went towards the back of the mansion. Chine was looking around, but mostly kept his focus towards him, he caught his eye and Chine sent him a smirk. Red's face twitches and he looks away. He doesn't know how to categorize this guy in his head. It was too early to consider him anything else as a somewhat assholish version of Classic that seems to treat his brother like shit, which brings down his image there. 

But he also came from a war era universe.

Which didn't really excuse his asshole behavior to his own brother but who knows, it might be a very complicated relationship.

Maybe.

But still, fucking hell.

Blue and the other more sentimental skeletons were no doubt going to try and repair their bond, or make it healthier at least.

"so, whaddaya do red?" Chine suddenly asks, startling Red slightly out of his thoughts. 

Red grunts at him, "th'fuck do you mean?" He opens the back door, stepping out and letting Chine follow after him. "if y'er talkin' about work, i just do odd jobs here and there. i mostly try to work on the machine." Speaking of which, this'll go a little faster with Chine around, he should know the schematics, or at least help in the tinkering. Maybe.

Chine nods, briefly distracted by the backyard of the mansion. It's beautiful, well kept, the bushes were rather nice and there were a few flowers here and there. But it was mostly bare, the backyard was mostly used for battle training but it was still well kept in the long run. There was a stone pathway heading towards the edge of the large backyard where the cottage was at, near the edge of the property and besides the forest.

It was a sizely cottage, looking homely and comfy. It was big enough to house about four, maybe six people. But it looked like it was going to house three.

"huh, not bad. looks cute even." Chine muses, looking over the cottage with an appreciative eye. Red snorts, cute, yeah. But the main residence weren't that cute.

And timing had it that Axe suddenly appeared at the porch, intimidating as always, Axe was one of the bigger of them, he and his brother towered over them usually. Axe stared at Chine with an unsettling but ultimately peaceful look on his face, the source of his name held loosely in his hand, the top of the axe nearly touching the porch's floor. 

Chine stares back, blinking his dark blue eyelights at him. There... was no fear on his face nor in his sockets, he stared at Axe with a curious near-awed look. That's... unexpected. He lifts a gloved hand to give him a lazy two fingered salute, "sup." He greeted the bigger skeleton, "nice to meet ya big guy." 

"... hey." Axe greeted back after a silent moment, shuffling back, "nice to meet you too. chine?" 

The coat-wearing skeleton nodded, a pleasant smile on his face, "yep. tha's me." 

Axe glances at him then at Red, "'s just you? not your brother too?" He asked quietly, no doubt wondering why he was there alone.

"just him, his bro's checkin' out a room in the mansion. apparently want some space from each other." Red drawls, a small pointed frown on his face. Lots of space. 

Chine waves it all off, "he gets his own room in a big ass mansion, i get the comfy room in the cottage- if ya don't mind that is." He says casually, ignoring on how weird it was to be separated so far away from his own brother. They just arrived in a new _universe_ and he was willing to be so far apart from his Papyrus? Red wouldn't buy it if it weren't happening right in front of him.

"ah... well, i don't really mind. my bro doesnt either." Axe motions them on towards the porch, his trusty axe suddenly disappearing from sight. "come on in."

Chine doesn't hesitate to step forward, going up the steps to get on the porch. Red's right behind him, nodding at Axe who nods back and turns towards the front door. "guess i'll show you around, paps' in the garden." He tells them and Chine hums. Crooks was a gardener and a bit of a farmer, he liked to take care of the flora around the mansion and cottage, it was his main hobby and he had a nice green thumb. Crooks even managed to get a few chickens to raise, that was nice, unexpected but nice. Anything to abstain him and Axe from eating anything human.

"i hit the jackpot, this place looks cozy." Chine comments, looking around the foyer. It was predictably smaller than the mansion's foyer but it was homely and well kept, despite their intimidating demeanors they were nice skeletons. Something that Red and the others had been hesitant to find out but, they were keeping an open mind out after a few... _disputes_ that went between Axe and the rest of them.

Red kept a steady breath, memories of the pained emotional words that Axe screamed at them when enough was enough.

Yeah, they all had a rocky start at the beginning, but they were getting better. All of them.

"yeah it is." Axe agrees quietly, "'s big enough for four skeletons, more if we work somethin' out like room sharin'." He drops the subtle hint, his brother was welcome here with him. But then again, his brother might not be as... calm? As Chine was right now, the guy didn't seem that bothered with Axe even if the skeleton towered a solid head over him. In fact, he seemed amused.

Chine hums in reply, looking around and catches his reflection in the mirror. His blue eyelights dimmed a bit in his sockets, "..." Red has to wonder what's going on in his head, the way he looks over his clothes before looking at himself in the reflection. He even looks at his surroundings and at them, he makes a small thoughtful noise, "... really standing out with my usual digs huh?" He questions, tugging lightly at his leather coat.

"you're standing out as much as the rest of us bub." Red admits to him, hands stuffed into the pockets of his baggy black and yellow fur-lined jacket. 

Axe does the same with his blue and gray fur-lined jacket. He already respected the guy for his strength but his sense of fashion was no doubt impeccable, fur-lined hoodies for the fucking win. Red keeps that amusing thought to himself with a hidden amused chuff.

"point." Chine chuckles, but still, he looks over his leather coat. "... i should probably hang my coat."

Red shrugs, "tha's up to you. you don't have ta if you don't wanna." He points out to him, but Chine's already unbuckling the few buckled straps on the coat, shrugging it off and... 

Red eyes skimmed over the leather harness that Chine wore underneath, Red almost forgot about that. Chine was... less bulky than Red expected. But then again, he'd been wearing the leather coat the entire time but still. Without the leather coat he was a bit smaller than he expected, even without his baggy jacket he was still bigger in terms of figure over Chine. His body type was almost like Blue and Black's, almost. He was still a bit taller and bigger than both of them.

He was still wearing that black scarf too, Red briefly thought on how he might be another version of Blue or Black rather than Red, Classic, Axe, etc. But his personality was lazy like theirs instead of boisterous like their brothers. 

Looking back at the harness, Red notices that Chine's gloves were connected to the harness in two somewhat thickish lines, he wonders on what that's about. Thinking about it, there was a strange design on the palms of the Chine's gloves. Almost looked like circuitry. 

Chine shuffles over to hang his coat and he starts to stretch, it's not slightly at all not subtle, Red's eyes widen and was he-

_pop pop_

Color invades his cheeks, Chine twists his hips and shoulders in a _certain way_ -

_pop pop pop pop  
_

**_crack_ **

...

Had he really?

Right in front of them?

_What the fuck?_

In his embarrassment, he doesn't notice the fact that those pops sounded a bit... mechanical in sound and nature.

* * *

God you needed that stretch.

A small noise of satisfaction escapes you as you roll a shoulder, massaging it lightly with a few light hits from your gloved hands. Much better.

You love the leather coat, it's amazing and all but you realize on how much it weighed and how much shit it had in its pockets, even when most of it was negated by the miracle of magic, your shoulders and back feel lighter without it on. Sure you feel a bit exposed and all but you still have the harness on you which is a form of comfort you suppose.

You also still have the black scarf. You're not taking it off. Not today at least.

You don't want to see the bronze that started at your axis bone that went all the way down from your vertebrae to your coccyx. Not yet. That... that'd be too much for today.

But still, hearing the mechanical popping and cracks from your new spine was admittedly cool. You feel like you're forgetting something though. You can't find it in yourself to remember. 

After your short stretching, you take your coat off the rack. You're not leaving it easily accessible by anyone else. You had important shit there, well, important Prosthesis Sans shit in there. You were going to look at it the first chance you get. Which might come sooner than later.

With a small satisfied smile, you turn back to the two other skeletons in the foyer with you. They... Are red in the face.

???

Were you missing something?

"somethin' wrong fellas?" You ask, scratching your cheek lightly in confusion. Did you do something?

Red gives you a look of disbelief while Axe stares at you with wide eyes, well, sockets. He has one big red eyelight with a black pupil in the middle. You always liked Horror Sans, he was interesting, the state of universe was damn horrible and no doubt terrifying but, you liked him all the same. Still, the whole in his cranium... reminds you too much of the new hole on your brother's face... 

You pointedly don't look at the hole on his skull the entire time. That was just rude anyway.

Anyway, why were they staring at you like that?

"... ya popped your spine." Red says aloud after a moment, a strange look on his face that was still colored an interesting strawberry shade. 

You cock a 'brow' at him. "and?" You prompt him.

Axe makes a quiet strangled noise, you give him a strange but somewhat concerned look, "... right in front of us. y-you popped-" He makes the attempt of speaking, "you seriously don't see the uh... problem here?" 

Frowning and furrowing your sockets, "didn't think there was a problem here. wha's the problem?" You ask, genuinely curious as to what they were having a problem with.

"didn't ga- _fuck_ \- did no one tell ya that poppin' your bones ain't appropriate?" Red questions roughly in a near hysterical tone. 

Popping your bones- oh. _Oh_. Was this the- holy shit, did the popping really bother the skeletons? You always thought that was just a trope or something- okay, uh, good to know? 

You're not embarrassed over it though, popping your bones were just natural to you. And your brother, you recall Prosthesis Sans and Papyrus popping their bones regularly in your AU. "uhhh... no?" You fib slightly, it isn't even a fib. No one's told you that popping your bones wasn't appropriate. Not to your recollection anyway. "is it like, taboo for you guys here?" You ask with confusion, inwardly finding it hilarious.

Holy shit, this was funny as hell.

You should tell this to your brother... or not, let him pop his bones in front of the others and watch their reactions. 

Hahaha, fuck yes. 

"uh, really? it's not- you never though- fucking hell-" Red's fumbling, you keep up your confusion because if you don't you're going to end up laughing your damn ass off.

Axe makes a strained exhale, covering his face with one skeletal hand. You give him your confused look as well, finding delight in the way color spread over his ivory bones. 

You give them a minute to gather their wits, "so uh... should we continue with the tour or..." You trail off hesitantly, briefly glancing at your reflection once more. 

You'll have to get used to that reflection now.

It'll be the face you'll see in the mirror from now on.

Not like you can remember what your original face was.

Axe nods stiffly, "yeah sure, let's continue the tour." Clearly he wants to move on from the embarrassing moment and Red was right behind him with his own stiff nod of agreement. "you wanna pick out your room?" 

"sure, show 'em to me." 

You follow after him and Red, carrying your leather coat as all three of you go upstairs.

The cottage had two levels, an attic and a small basement. The basement and attic was being used for storage, so you probably can't use them in the long term. Guess you'll have to go back and forth from the mansion and cottage for 'work' in the near future...

Could you even do the 'work'?

The visor on your brother's face was a piece of complicated tech.

Even if you did technically design the thing, you had no idea how it worked in practicality. 

Well, you had a vague idea but still, this was entirely different!

A heavy sigh escapes your mouth, causing Red to give you a look, as you reach the top of the stairs. You wave it off, "jus' thinkin' 'bout stuff, don't mind me." You give him a tired smile, his features twist before softening slightly. But he still looks like one hell of a grump. 

Axe stands in the semi-large hallway, "there are two bathrooms on this level, both with showers and a bathtub. there's a small toilet downstairs." Axe informs you, pointing out to the bathroom doors of the second floor. "the rest of the rooms are bedrooms, tha's my room and that's my bros." He points to the specific doorways and you glance at the last two doors. 

The large skeleton opens the nearest room, you peer into it.

It's modestly sized, a small indoor closet, a double sized bed with white sheets. A dresser in the corner with a desk besides it, a small chair. It was sizable, comfy, nice looking. There was even a big window.

You whistle, you felt like this was just one of those bedrooms you'd typically see when you search 'bedroom' on the web.

"nice room, props to the one who keeps this clean and shit, what about the other room?" You ask, looking towards the other room.

Axe seems pleased, his brother probably was the one who kept the room clean so that's great. You can't wait to meet Crooks. He steps over towards the other room and you peer into it as well.

You're instantly sold.

It wasn't because of the fact it was probably a little bigger, or anything else in the room except for the one single thing; _a window seat_.

There was a window seat in this room, the window was a bit bigger and the window seat wasn't as big as the bed but it was great. "i'll take this room." You say, stepping into the room and setting your coat on the window seat. You'd get rid of the bed, you don't need it now that you had the window seat, you're a sucker for window seats, beds and nooks okay. You look out the window, towards the sky. 

"always wanted a good place like this... no smog or smoke here, maybe i can finally see the stars again." You say absentmindedly, gloved hand reaching out to touch the window pane.

_ Looking out the window, you curl against the old pillows and the barred window sill, eyelights dim in the lightless room aimed out at the darkness outside. No stars tonight either. Too much smoke again. At least there were still the lights of the street and other buildings to keep light in the darkness. Papyrus mutters slightly against your torso, thin blanket draped over his figure and slightly over you. You sigh, the tip of your fingers brush against his skull. You can't sleep, not with Papyrus sleeping right now. That's fine.  _

It's fine.

With you wistfully looking out the window, already perched on the window seat, you miss the looks and words being exchanged behind you.

You're snapped out of your reverie when Axe speaks up, "a'ight, good to know." You blink rapidly and shake your head, the hell... must've thought back to one of the scenes you wrote out for Prosthesis Sans. Okay so your love for window beds, seats and nooks bled into your Sans. That was fine, that was commonplace for writer's and shit.

You give a small smile, "yeah. this'll be my room now. be lookin' forward to housin' with you an' your bro." You say honestly, your smile growing a bit.

Axe looks a bit taken back but nods back.

You look back outside the window, this was the room that was facing the mansion, you see it and you wonder on how it was going for Visor. Your brother must've found his room by now right? Maybe you should ask Red.

There was a strangled horrified sound behind you, you turn and- that was Red, he had his phone out and his eyelights were completely gone as he looked down at his phone. "red? dude? what's wrong?" Axe moves behind him to peer down at the phone and instantly stills.

Curious and concerned, you get off the window seat and wander over to look as well.

...

_Oh._

_ You 4:53  
_ what??   
send me a damn pic blue

_ Blueballs 4:57 PM  
_ I'M TELLING THE TRUTH!! THE FRONT PART OF HIS SKULL IS GONE!!!   
I SHOULDN'T   
FINE LOOK!!!  
RED WE DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO OR WHAT HAPPENED :((((((

Red had been texting Blue apparently, which was fine.

However the topic of their text was your brother.

Visor finally took off his visor and Blue was freaking out about it. Or rather, the hole that was on your brother's face.

There in a shaky and hastily taken picture was your brother, standing in some room with his visor off. 

Most of his frontal and nasal bone was gone, revealing the hollow darkness of the inside of his skull. Small cracks edged the slightly jagged hole, the longest crack ran from the corner of where his sockets should be that lead all the way to the small welded gear-like bumps at the side of his skull around his sphenoid area of bone.

Something in your chest stutters, you SOUL? 

You did that.

You and Prosthesis Sans did that to your brothers.

Your sins crawled and tangled itself with your back.

"guess he finally took that thing off." You deadpan.

Axe and Red gives you off looks, eyelights still gone from their sockets. "time for me to head back. gotta check on shit."

You take your leather coat, beating down the guilt viciously in favor of indifference. You don't have time to feel emotions. You'll do that later when you actually can.

"take me to visor." You tell Red and Axe, mostly Red though.

You found your rooms, you should talk now with your brother.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> second chapter because why not  
> im winging it here but hey it looks like its doing well  
> hope you guys continue to enjoy it because this is actually kind nice  
> also yes i used homestuck-style skin because colorful and nice okay?  
> anyway, thanks guys


	3. Attempted Maintenance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it may seem like i'm skimming on a few interesting things but trust me  
> i'm not  
> i'm just getting started on it  
> it's not all perfect  
> but hey we're going somewhere

* * *

Leading Visor upstairs towards the vacant rooms, Blue's mind was in disarray with the recent information he just learned.

Visor and Chine were in a really rough patch and came from a very complicated and possibly horrifying, terrifying universe. 

What was he talking about, it wasn't really _possibly_ and more leaning towards _definitely_ on horrifying and terrifying. This was _War_ they were talking about.

War, a horrible elongated series of battles that ended in death and despair.

Or at least, that's what Blue thought about war.

Blue wasn't as naive as what most people thought him to be, his brother seemed to forget that he was a grown adult. He might be childish, optimistic and enthusiastic to an unnatural degree, it didn't mean that he wasn't entirely aware of everything that happened to him. 

He loved Papyrus, he really did but his brother had to stop completely coddling him and keeping him in the dark of things. Even Classic was less... _suffocating_. Which- look, he knows Papy just wanted to keep him safe and the resets and continuous timelines were absolutely horrible but still, he wasn't a child. He was a grown adult, a grown skeleton that could make his own decisions.

He was strong, he was capable of many things- many amazing and magnificent things! For he was the amazing and magnificent Blue! 

Anyway, back to the point; he knew about war. He knew the full nitty gritty grim dark of it all, he read about the war from Classic's history books, heck _he_ was the one who told Papy all about the World Wars. 

That... ended up not so clean.

It was the first time he had shouted at his brother, finally lashing out all the bottled up emotions he felt about Papyrus coddling him like some _child_.

They... were on rocky terms on that, it wasn't perfect but at least Papyrus was making the effort in not being as overbearing anymore.

Blue could handle himself.

"AND THIS IS THE SECOND FLOOR! SOME OF THE BEDROOMS ARE HERE BUT A LOT OF IT ARE OTHER TYPES OF ROOMS! THERE'S A ROOM VACANT HERE I THINK, NEARBY GREEN AND G'S ROOMS. THEY LIKE STAYING NEAR THE LIBRARY!" Blue tells Visor, motioning to each doorway that lead to said rooms. "OH! AND THE DANCE ROOM IS HERE TOO! TANGO IS IN THERE WITH BONES! WOULD YOU LIKE TO MEET THEM?" He grins brightly at the taller skeleton who was taking in everything with a calm demeanor. 

Visor reminded him of Green in a way, mature, still kind of like Pyrus but less boisterous and enthusiastic. Less like Blue and Pyrus but he was still himself, and generally loud like the rest of them. It kind of confused him a bit but he didn't mind. Bones was like that too, mature, ish- he was definitely enthusiastic though, but with the fact he was a mafiaso, well, he had his very mature and or serious moments.

Visor seemed thoughtful over it, mainly because his eyes disappeared and there was an orange loading circle on his screen now. Blue thought his mask-screen thing was so very cool! It probably helped Visor with his sight and stuff like that- apparently it was a common thing that most of them needed reading glasses. Papyruses especially. So maybe the visor was a goggle, glasses thing that helped Visor look far into the distance and read things properly. 

Did everyone in his universe have it?

Did they use it in the war?

Did long ranged fighters use them to their advantage?

Blue shakes away those thoughts, now wasn't the time to think of that! He was here to provide a tour and help Visor pick out a room in the mansion! Again it was more than a bit strange for just Visor to pick in the mansion but... Maybe it really was for the best, he and his brother didn't seem to get along like the rest of them. Even Mutt and Black were better at communicating than these two, Mutt didn't insult his own brother back after all.

That just made him more determined to help Visor and Chine's relationship as brothers! They just needed some help is all.

"WELL IF THEY'RE USING THE DANCE ROOM THEN IT SEEMS THAT THEY'RE BUSY. I'D RATHER NOT INTERRUPT THEM RIGHT NOW, MAYBE I CAN PROPERLY MEET THEM LATER DURING THAT DINNER THAT PYRUS MENTIONED." Visor replies, shaking his head and giving Blue a small smile. "I WOULD RATHER SEE THE ROOMS FIRST IF YOU DON'T MIND BLUE." 

At least he was polite.

Blue beamed at him, "I DON'T MIND AT ALL! COME!" He beckoned Visor to follow him, merrily making his way towards the room that was near G and Green's room. It was right across from the library actually. He opens the door and motions inside, "HERE IT IS!"

It was a rather large room, with a double sized bed. There was a desk, a big wooden wardrobe with a full body mirror and a small indoor closet. The windows were big with the curtains drawn and opened neatly apart. The color of the room was rather drab but Blue was sure that Visor, if he picked the room that is, would change the color to suit his tastes like everyone else did. 

Visor steps into the room, looking around with observant eyes, probably finding a lot of things with that neat mask of his. "IT LOOKS LOVELY." He admits to Blue who smiles brightly. He, Pyrus, Green, Tango, Black and Bones tidied the vacant rooms from time to time. Making sure they were presentable and clean for whenever they either had guests that were staying the night, or more likely new housemates from the machine's malfunctions.

That sure paid off in the end!

"DO YOU WANT TO LOOK AT THE OTHER ROOMS OR DO YOU FEEL LIKE THIS ROOM IS ENOUGH FOR YOU? WE HAVE BIGGER ROOMS IF YOU WANT." Blue offered him.

The loading circle appeared on Visor's screen again, he has to muffle his giggles at it as Visor hummed in thought. "WELL, THIS IS A NICE ROOM AND IT'S RIGHT ACROSS THE LIBRARY." He said, contemplating on it. Blue perked, oh so did that mean Visor liked reading? That was great! Green was his neighbor and loved reading too! They'd get along just fine then! "I GUESS IT WON'T HURT TO LOOK AT THE OTHER ROOMS." 

"GREAT! ALSO, THERE'S ONE BIG BATHROOM HERE, RIGHT OVER THERE." Blue motioned to the bathroom door, "THERE'S TWO BIG ONES ON THE THIRD FLOOR AS WELL, THERE'S A SMALL BATHROOM ON THE GROUND FLOOR NEAR THE KITCHEN." 

Visor nodded back at him and then followed him towards the third floor where most of the bedrooms were.

Blue pointed out to the occupied rooms and which rooms everyone had, "THIS IS MY ROOM! AND THERE'S A VACANT ROOM RIGHT BESIDE IT SO MAYBE WE COULD BE ROOM NEIGHBORS!" He chirped, he certainly hoped they'd be room neighbors but he wouldn't mind if Visor chose somewhere else. 

Visor gives him a small smile, "MAYBE." He agreed, waiting for Blue to open the door. 

The room was indeed bigger and nicer looking, Blue took care of it most of the time, though it was bare out of any personality aside from cleanliness. It was just waiting for someone to occupy it. Like all the other vacant rooms in the mansion. Which Blue showed him, there was a vacant room besides Noir and Mutt's room, across Classic's room, and a final vacant room besides Hop's room.

There were five vacant rooms, a sixth one if the free room in the cottage was counted in.

Blue had to wonder on how Red and Axe were doing with Chine and how they were doing in general. Was Chine alright with Axe? He was rather intimidating for a skeleton. 

"THEY'RE ALL LOVELY ROOMS, IT'S ALMOST HARD TO CHOOSE." Visor admits once he and Blue stepped out of the room that was beside's Hop's room. "HOWEVER I THINK I'D PREFER THE ROOM ACROSS THE LIBRARY." He tells Blue.

Blue was briefly disappointed but quickly shrugs it off, he gives Visor a beaming smile, "ALRIGHT! THEN THAT ROOM IS YOURS! WELCOME TO OUR HOME VISOR!!" He exclaims, practically bouncing in place. 

Visor smiles minutely, "THANK YOU BLUE. FOR EVERYTHING, ESPECIALLY THE TEA." 

The smaller skeleton laughed and waved it off, "YOU'RE WELCOME! ESPECIALLY FOR THE TEA! IT'S ECHO FLOWER TEA! WE HAVE PLENTY OF IT AND OTHER TEAS IN THE KITCHEN!"

"I'LL KEEP THAT IN MIND."

And thus the bedrooms were filled on the second floor. Together they returned to the room that was across the library, Visor's room neighbors would be G and Green. Visor sat down on the bed, his face lost in thought- the loading circle was back. Blue smiled and then wondered on what Visor would do with the room, what items would adorn the walls and shelves, the desks and such. What would Visor need for his room?

Also, he and Chine probably needed clothes. They should take them shopping for basic clothing tomorrow, would they choose more casual clothing? Or stick to the current type of clothes that they were wearing right now? The others tended to stick to their own types of clothing, but they've all gotten a bit more casual the longer they stayed however of course said clothing were always their tastes of fashion.

"DINNER IS IN A FEW HOURS OR SO, DO YOU NEED ANYTHING ELSE? WANT TO DO ANYTHING TO PASS THE TIME?" Blue asked, would Visor like to do a few puzzles with him? He probably would! Everyone liked puzzles after all!

Visor hummed, the circle disappears once more before looking at Blue. "I DON'T THINK I NEED ANYTHING ELSE RIGHT NOW... ACTUALLY HOLD ON, I NEED TO TAKE OFF MY VISOR FOR A LITTLE WHILE." He said aloud, digital eyes furrowing. 

Blue perked, "OH REALLY? BY ALL MEANS, GO RIGHT AHEAD!" Oh! Maybe he could ask Visor if he could wear his mask and see what it was like on? Would he see everything differently? How did it work exactly?

Visor hesitated, "UH, ALRIGHT... FAIR WARNING HOWEVER, PLEASE DON'T PANIC. EVERYTHING IS FINE OKAY?" He says to Blue, already reaching up to take off his visor. 

Confused, Blue merely nodded, "OKAY?" He repeated, watching the way the screen flashed strange images and letters before dimming down. "WHY WOULDN'T EVERYTHING NOT... BE... OKAY?" Blue's mouth hung open as Visor set aside his mask, a tired sigh of relief escaping him. 

"OH THAT FEELS BETTER.... BLUE? BLUE? ARE YOU OKAY?" Visor asked aloud, skull turned to his direction.

Blue snapped out of it and a loud panicked shout slipped out of his mouth, "AM I OKAY?! ARE _YOU_ OKAY?! YOUR SKULL! Y-YOUR FACE!! THERE'S-THERE'S A--" A hole.

There was a _hole_ on Visor's face. 

A big hole that encompassed most of Visor's upper skull. He didn't have a nasal bone, a lower forehead- Visor's screen had covered the entire hole. _No wonder it was so big_ and _no wonder Visor wore it_.

"A HOLE. YES, I KNOW BLUE." Visor replied flatly- of course he knew. How couldn't he knew? It was _his face_ that had the hole. "I'M FINE BLUE, REALLY I AM." 

Blue still made a small whimper, "BUT-BUT STILL! YOU-- HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?! ARE YOU ACTUALLY OKAY? CAN I- CAN I HELP? I'M VERY GOOD AT HEALING!!" He exclaimed very loudly. He should help him- _could_ he help him? That- he couldn't help Axe with his hole before. Was this like that? 

"BLUE I'M FINE, REALLY I'M FINE." Visor replies, giving him a reassuring smile. It would've worked had it not for the hole on his face.

"BUT-" "BLUE? BLUE ARE YOU ALRIGHT? WE HEARD SOMETHING ABOUT HEALING- OH MY STARS ARE YOU OKAY?!?!!" 

Blue whirled around to see both Tango and Bones looking shocked at the doorway. "TANGO! BONES!" 

"WE JUST FINISHED OUR SESSION AND OPENED THE DOOR WHEN WE HEARD YOU, DEAR ME ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!" Tango exclaimed with worry at Visor who tilts his skull with a pointed frown.

"I- AH, RATHER BAD TIME TO TAKE OFF MY VISOR I CAN'T SEE YOU SO PARDON ME BUT REALLY I'M ALRIGHT. HELLO THOUGH, I'M-PAPYRUS, THOUGH YOU MAY CALL ME VISOR, THE NEWEST OCCUPANT TO THE MANSION." Visor greets, waving at them, or in their direction. He... he really couldn't see them? Without his screen visor, he really couldn't see them?

Blue gulps and gets his phone out, he- should tell the others. Red especially maybe because he was with Chine? Chine must know of this right? He had to.

 _ You 4:51 PM  
_ RED! RED!!! VISOR HAS A HOLE ON HIS FACE!! 

_ Red >:P 4:52 PM _  
blue what the hell????

* * *

Maybe you shouldn't have taken your visor off with Blue around.

You probably should've waited for him to leave the room and leave you alone in said room for a few hours... But then again he would've found out anyway? And you do need your brother over to see if he can actually deal with the visor that is now off your face. 

It's...

Very weird, being unable to see.

Darkness surrounds you and it triggers a small instinctive fear in the back of your mind that you can thankfully ignore if you just... sit still and not think about it too seriously. It was like a blindfold you could never take off, yeah, something like that. Compared to your visor where you continuously watched everything without blinking. Ever. 

It was a multifaceted, it gave Prosthesis Papyrus the ability to see, the ability to calculate, see things on another level- it was a high-tech mask, the type you'd see from sci-fi. However the cost of it being so high-tech was the fact its power source wasn't that normal... it didn't run on the typical electricity, it had no batteries nor any internal power sources...

It ran entirely on magic. Specifically the magic that came off from one's SOUL.

It ran on Prosthesis Papyrus' SOUL, tied completely to him. Almost no one else would be able to use the visor, Prosthesis Sans could use the thing but it wouldn't be as effective or fully functional. The visor was made for Papyrus after all, made for you. 

It ran on your SOUL now.

You didn't notice on how the visor could actually affect someone, how it could affect Prosthesis Papyrus- i.e. affect _you_ now. 

You felt tired, not completely, but the type of tired you'd get from jogging in place for a set amount of time. The subtle tether in your chest was gone, as was the previous near unnoticeable weight on your face. 

You'd rub your face if it weren't for the fact you'd rather not remind yourself of your predicament, you don't think you can handle your fingers, gloved or not, meeting the edge of the hole that covered the front of your skull. Fuck, you could probably reach into your own skull and touch the back of the inside of your skull.

That's...

A fucking disturbing thing to think of thank's nonexistent brain.

You hate yourself so much right now.

Trying to reassure Blue wasn't going as well as you'd like it to be, you can't see and you're lowkey trying not to trigger a damn panic attack for yourself because holy shit a lot of things have happened. Maybe you should wear your visor again, seeing without blinking was better than being blind-

Except you just took it off.

And you remember the reason why you _have_ to leave if off for _at least_ a few minutes or more.

The visor was magically taxing, and technically a bit dangerous with how it was using your SOUL as a main source of power. That way, not only can it be fully functional, it can keep a sign of your vitals, keep records what you see, technically read your mind and function with only your thoughts. 

However with the fact it was using your SOUL as its power source, you have to be careful with it since it's linked to your SOUL whenever it's on your face and activated. If your visor was ripped off your face while it was activated- well, that would end up _very_ bad for you. Less said about it the better. 

You really don't want to think about that right now. 

So you focus on reassuring Blue to the best of your abilities. Which wasn't much right now probably.

"BLUE? BLUE ARE YOU ALRIGHT? WE HEARD SOMETHING ABOUT HEALING- OH MY STARS ARE YOU OKAY?!?!!" 

Oh hey new people.

_Oh no new people._

"TANGO! BONES!" 

Dancetale and Mobtale.

You haven't met anyone from Dancetale yet, but Bones was Skulls brother right? Yeah.

"WE JUST FINISHED OUR SESSION AND OPENED THE DOOR WHEN WE HEARD YOU, DEAR ME ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!" Someone, either Tango of Bones, questions you with clear concern and worry, you don't know who spoke but you reply all the same.

"I- AH, RATHER BAD TIME TO TAKE OFF MY VISOR I CAN'T SEE YOU SO PARDON ME BUT REALLY I'M ALRIGHT. HELLO THOUGH, I'M-PAPYRUS, THOUGH YOU MAY CALL ME VISOR, THE NEWEST OCCUPANT TO THE MANSION." You greet, waving idly in the direction of Tango/Bones' voice. 

There's shuffling in the room, padded footsteps that get muffled by the shag carpet, "ARE YOU REALLY SURE?" That was a different voice- well, technically it was the same but you can tell it's different. There's an accent there, the pitch of their voice was different. Huh, even with how they're both Papyrus it makes sense that their voices would be different- familiar and somewhat the same at first but the difference is there and noticeable if you listen to it.

Thinking about it it was the same for the Sans back then, Red, Classic, Skull, Blue- even Chine. They all had different voices. You wonder how your voice sounds- to the others, you know how your voice sounds to yourself, it's hard not to, but still.

"YES, FOR THE LAST TIME I'M REALLY SURE. I PROMISE IT JUST LOOKS BAD." You reply, nodding your head. You flinch back and quickly stand on your feet to get away from the startling sensation of fingers brushing against the side of your face, right at your cheek. You didn't expect the touch, and your SOUL pumps a bit faster in your chest. 

The accented voice yelps, "MY APOLOGIES! I SHOULD HAVE TOLD YOU THAT I WANTED TO TOUCH YOUR FACE, BUT- I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE. MAY I STILL TRY TO HEAL YOU? I KNOW YOU SAY IT'S FINE BUT..." He trails off, clearly sounding conflicted and still very concerned. You take in a deep and calming breath, you're good. You're fine.

"BUT NOTHING. I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU, ALL THREE OF YOU, ARE CONCERNED BUT PLEASE BELIEVE ME. I. AM. FINE. I JUST- NEED A FEW MINUTES. AND THEN I CAN PUT MY VISOR ON AND EVERYTHING WILL BE BACK TO NORMAL. YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO SEE THE HOLE." You reassure them, you were fine, great, good. Like you said, you just needed a few minutes. 

Without your vision, you can't see Blue taking a shaky but quick picture of you. 

"YOU _CAN'T SEE RIGHT NOW?!_ " The other voice, different accent and pitch of voice, exclaims. 

Groaning, you aim your face upwards- you can't pinch the bridge of your nose, you have no nose. Nor do you want to palm your face, the hole is there. The hole will always be there now. 

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO REPEAT? _I. AM. FINE._ " You're getting more tired rather refreshed without your visor on. But your SOUL should be fine. Just... a few more minutes and you can put it back on... You hope. You actually need a bit of help. Maybe. Just a tiny bit.

You... need your brother. 

You want your brother.

Your brother knows what to do.

He always knows what to do.

He knows what to do with your visor.

He usually does.

He's the one who designed it.

Just for you.

Always just for you.

_It's really dark, your face hurts and your throat is sore from screaming and sobbing. Sans is holding you close, you can't see him but you can feel him, hear him, "it's going- going to be okay pap. i- i'll fix it. i'm sorry. so sorry- i'll f-f-fix this for you. i'm sorry, just- han-hang on there okay? i'll- i'll make you goggles. you wanted them right? i'll- i'll make'em for ya. no, even better- a visor! 's gonna be so cool. you'll see again, i promise. just hang on okay? wait a bit. you're gonna be fine." You're gonna be fine. Your brother said so. Even if you couldn't see, your brother knows what to do, he always does- even if he's the reason why it's so dark for you but that's okay. He knew what to do, he knows what to do, you're gonna be fine. _

You're gonna be fine.

You think you zoned out a bit, you're suddenly sitting down on the bed rather than standing. There are hands, two pairs of hands you think since there's two left hands and a right hand you can feel on you, gentle and warmth- too big to be your brother's hands, on your body. There's a left hand on your shoulder, another left hand but with a right hand is holding your hand. 

You feel warm.

Your SOUL feels warm.

It's not the right kind of warmth, but it's still nice.

The hand on your shoulder tightens a bit, and the hands holding your hand shake a bit before they were firm once more.

"I MUST HAVE ZONED OUT A BIT, I'M SORRY." You say softly, feeling briefly confused on what was happening. The hands... they belonged to Tango and Bones didn't they? Why were they holding on to you? "WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?" 

"WE..."

There's suddenly more footsteps.

"visor!" That's Red voice, oh he was suddenly here. Was your brother-

"great idea taking your damn visor off without me around. grade a genius move there bro." There he is.

Immediately you shrug off Tango and Bones' hands, internally feeling relieved as you externally snort, "WELCOME BACK _DEAREST BROTHER,_ " You say with cutting sarcasm. "I DIDN'T THINK IT'D MAKE THIS MUCH OF A FUSS, I DON'T NEED YOUR HELP." On the contrary you do, he knows this, you know this, but like hell were you going to verbally confirm it in front of others. It was instinct to just say that.

He snorts, more footsteps, "sure you don't bro, sure you don't." He replies dryly and there's a new pair of hands on your face, you can feel leather on your cheeks, it's his gloves. The bed shifts, both Tango and Bones seem to have stood up and left. You wonder if he's looking into your skull right now, is he feeling as discomforted as you are right now? No doubt about that. Still, you swat them away, a bit harder than you intend to. Your nerves are getting to you. "watch it bro- oh wait, you can't." He snarks, there's murmuring in the background but you focus on him as he puts his hands back on your face. You 'reluctantly' leave them alone.

"we get spat out into a new universe and you decide it's a great time to just take it off yourself without me around? fucking stars visor, i can't remember whether or not we did maintenance on your shit or not." His hands disappear and you barely stop yourself from reaching out. You instead feel the bed shift again, your brother's sat down.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, I'M FINE. I'M FAIRLY SURE WE DID MAINTENANCE SO I'M CERTAIN I DON'T NEED YOUR CURRENT ASSISTANCE!!" 

"stop acting like a brat and just sit still, stay quiet and let me check on your visor. i'd rather not hear you fucking whine to me about it malfunctioning or something." 

"UGH I HATE YOU SO FUCKING MUCH."

"right back at you now shut up."

There's relief hidden in your scoff, your brother knows what he's doing... right? Anxiety bubbles in bottom of your stomach, he knows what he was doing right? 

These... weren't their bodies, did your brother know what to do with the high tech visor that provided you one of your most important senses?

There's a sudden kick to your shin, "WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR?!" You exclaimed as your brother snickered.

"nothing much. just didn't like the stupid look on your face." 

Ah.

He knows what he's doing.

You try to swat where he is, predictably you can't because he either dodges or you missed. His snicker grows in volume.

"FUCK YOU AND YOUR CHILDISH ACTIONS." 

The darkness is terrifying and complicated but you can bear with it. Soon you'll be able to see.

* * *

Going back to the mansion was as simple as taking a short cut.

Meaning both iterations of Sans teleported back towards the mansion with you in tow.

Well, you hitched a ride by holding on to Axe for a brief moment. If you hadn't then you would have went to try on your own and you were too nervous to do that, what if you failed? It would only just confirm that you have Prosthesis Sans' body and none of his skill, talents, powers, etc. Also time was of the essence since you're sure if you hadn't hitched a ride you'd end up just walking or running back to the mansion and the others would be suspicious of you.

Playing it off to laziness would be a bad idea.

Playing off laziness of just hitching a ride with Axe was a better idea.

And you have to say, _taking a short cut_ was both cool and a bit terrifying.

For a moment the world disappeared, leaving only you and Axe. Axe gives you a surprised look and you give him a lazy smile in return as you held his sleeve. 

And just as fast the world reappeared, this time in a different location. 

You were inside the mansion, right atop the stairs of the second floor. 

Casually, you let go of Axe's sleeve. "where is he?" You question Red who grunts and glances at his phone. 

You briefly glance at the hallways you're in. Damn was it fancy, just how big was this mansion actually? You know there's three floors- four if you include the basement. 

"room before the library." Red says, gaining your attention. Okay, room before the library- there was a library? Good, you and your brother can catch up on things after you both settle and talk.

The three of you quickly stride towards your brother's apparent new room. Which was apparently occupied mostly by Papyruses, your brother included, Blue was standing worriedly at the side near the bed. Your brother's sitting down on the edge of the bed, a confused frown on his face and... a hole as well. Right. Hole in the face, hole in the- You suck in a deep low breath, don't focus on that right now. Compartmentalize it all for later.

On both his side were two new Papyruses that you can instantly recognize. 

Dancetale Papyrus, Tango, is sitting on your brother's right, holding his hand in both of his, a subtle green glow coming off of his hands. He was wearing a thankfully buttoned up white Latin-dace style shirt, a red sash wrapped around his torso and waist, brown pressed pants and tap dancing shoes. He's startled by your appearance. 

Mobtale Papyrus, Bones, sits on your brother's left, hand on his shoulder which was also subtly glowing green. He wore a somewhat more casual look compared to his brother's suit, a red dress shirt, black pressed pants and he was also wearing tap dancing shoes, but the only reason you know this is Bones and was Skull's brother was from the red-striped fedora on his head. The same one that Skull had earlier on.

"visor!" Red says from your side, sounding shell-shocked and faint- seeing your brother's face in the picture was one thing, but to see it in real life was another. You'd be in his shoes or even in a far worse state of shock and no doubt guilt if it weren't for the fact you compartmentalized and was prioritizing something far more important than your guilt and despair over what was happening.

You step into the room, a half-lidded look of disinterest on your face, "great idea taking your damn visor off without me around. grade a genius move there bro." You say aloud, watching your brother pause and then shrug off both Tango and Bones' hands off of him. They protest but he doesn't hear them, he snorts at you.

"WELCOME BACK _DEAREST BROTHER,_ " You say with cutting sarcasm. "I DIDN'T THINK IT'D MAKE THIS MUCH OF A FUSS, I DON'T NEED YOUR HELP." You smirk at his reply and snort back.

"sure you don't bro, sure you don't." You reply dryly as you're now right in front of your brother. You're a bit irked by the new height difference, he was so much taller than you now. Even when he was sitting down, he was taller than you. You were the same heights before, you think, you weren't sure. Something is still messing with your memories, you can't remember your original name, nor much of your life. 

Don't focus on that, focus on your brother. 

You do that. 

Tango and Bones leave your brother's side.

You lay your hands on his cheeks, idly peering into the hole of his skull, something inside you screams and the guilt grows. It's in the compartment where you shoved it in mentally to stay calm and focus on your brother. Your brother swats away your hands harshly, an unconscious scowl on his face. Or the rest of his face, his mouth. You scowl back, "watch it bro- oh wait, you can't." You snark, putting your hands on his face again before glancing over to the visor he took off that was on the bed itself. Inactive and just sitting there face down. 

You hear a bit of the conversation that's going on behind you.

"I- THIS IS HIS BROTHER YES?" That's Tango, or Bones, you don't turn around to check.  
"A-AH, YES. THIS IS CHINE! VISOR'S BROTHER." Blue.  
"...fucking hell this is worse than i thought." Red. What was worse than you thought Red?   
"this is..." Axe. Trailed off there buddy.  
"... I CHECKED HIS STATS..." 

You don't focus on the conversation they're having, you're more interested in the visor. "we get spat out into a new universe and you decide it's a great time to just take it off yourself without me around? fucking stars visor, i can't remember whether or not we did maintenance on your shit or not." You take your hands off his face, reaching out to the visor on the bed, taking that in hand instead. You also sit down on the bed, better than left standing.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, I'M FINE. I'M FAIRLY SURE WE DID MAINTENANCE SO I'M CERTAIN I DON'T NEED YOUR CURRENT ASSISTANCE!!" 

You're saying some bullshit about remembering or forgetting maintenance, but you're aware of the company that's within earshot. Somewhat. You're not risking shit. But your brother knows this, this was a warning, you have no idea what's going to happen. Could you actually deal with your brother's visor? Something so high-tech and complicated? You designed the thing sure but you have no idea how it actually works. 

Maybe. Maybe, by chance, you'll know if you look into it. 

If you don't- well it's going to be very difficult for you and your brother.

Moment of truth.

"stop acting like a brat and just sit still, stay quiet and let me check on your visor. i'd rather not hear you fucking whine to me about it malfunctioning or something." You scold him as you turn the visor and look into the inner interface of it. 

A complicated circuit, inner screen and interface greets your face, it's familiar. Definitely something that you designed, you had sketched it out of course.

"UGH I HATE YOU SO FUCKING MUCH." Your brother huffs and you instinctively roll your eyes.

"right back at you now shut up." You snap at him before looking back down at the visor. 

You...

The corners of your lips turn upwards.

_You know what to do._

Holy fuck.

Your hands move, a finger pressing against a certain point of the inner circuit of the visor, the visor activating as the circuit design on your gloves glows slightly. Another hand fiddles with the knob at the underside of the visor, adjusting it. The inner screen comes to life, numbers write itself on it, symbols flashing by that catches your eyes. 

You're barely able to hold down the laugh of relief.

You know what you're doing.

It's instinctive, you don't understand everything yet, but you get the _gist_ of it.

You have it. You have Prosthesis Sans' skills... or at least some of it. Not too sure about everything just yet but... You have it.

You have enough to help your brother.

And hopefully, your brother has the same.

Your spine's maintenance is next, but thankfully not for a while. In a few days probably.

Gives you enough time to get ready. The both of you.

Your brother has more work to do than you with that. You'd pity him if you didn't know what was going to happen to you while he works on your spine. 

Your neck is already aching and you beat down the shiver that tries to go down your back.

Still, you should let your brother know because it looks like he's getting anxious himself. His hands are starting to clench at the bed's surface. Plus, you can relieve yourself of some laughter.

So naturally, the only thing you can do is kick his shin. That certainly gains his attention. "WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR?!" He exclaims, infuriated. You snicker, smirking and grinning at him. 

"nothing much. just didn't like the stupid look on your face." You tell him and his shoulders drop a centimetre, his hands unclench and you yourself relax a tad bit. 

"FUCK YOU AND YOUR CHILDISH ACTIONS." He tries to swat you, you lean back slightly and are deeply amused when he misses. 

You'd both be fine.

This was going to be fine.

Still, you wished the others weren't here, you'd like to actually talk to your brother. Should you ask them to leave completely? No, not yet. You were basically almost done with the visor anyway, you've adjusted it, the visor's inner machinations were doing just fine. Your brother was... doing fine enough according to the visor's information. Interesting thing to see, your brother's stats. It was involved along with the visor's information log.

PAPYRUS 'VISOR' SCRIPT  
LV 12  
HP 337.5/337.5 | 340 [LAST RECORDED]  
AT 30 [WITHOUT VISOR | LAST RECORDED]  
DF 10 [WITHOUT VISOR | LAST RECORDED]  
* HE'S TIRED. A BIT PARANOID AND ANXIOUS. [LAST RECORDED]  
CONNECTION: STABLE  
SOUL STATUS: STABLE  
HYPNOS WAVELENGTH: RECEIVING  
HYPNOS STATUS: ONLINE  
DATA STATUS: ENCRYPTED | LOCKED  


Makes you think of your own stats.

You'll check on a later date. 

Last step...

You channel your magic into the visor and boy, does magic feel _weird_. The good kind of weird, but it felt... you have no idea how to describe it actually. But right now, you're funneling your magic into the visor, which would funnel it into your brother, which will help his SOUL heal a bit. The missing 2.5 of his SOUL was converted into magic for the visor itself. Normal healing magic wouldn't be able to affect the missing part, not permanently anyway, only your magic that was converted through the visor or generally just your gloves.

This was kind of why your brother had to take off his visor periodically and why you have to do periodical maintenance on it. However despite how it was, it wasn't that bad, the visor itself took .5 converted SOUL and magic energy to function properly, giving your brother his sight, the information, all of that. Your brother just had to watch how he used his magic, how well his SOUL was, how long he had the visor on, returned to you for full on healing and he'd be fine.

On the other hand the same couldn't exactly be said for your spine...

That was fine. It was fine.

You didn't have to think about it for now.

You'd both get through this together.

* * *

Bones glanced over to the two new skeleton brothers sitting on the bed. Bickering as Chine fiddled with Visor's visor in his hands. He seemed to know what he was doing.

Then obviously he would know why his brother's stats were as they were?

He remembered it quite clearly since he CHECK'ed Visor's stats after Visor swayed in place, concerning he, Tango and Blue. He and Tango lead the poor skeleton towards the bed. They used healing magic and tried to help, and when it didn't seem like anything was happening, Bones CHECK'ed Visor, though he was originally guilty of doing so without his permission, he was quite shocked with his new findings. 

PAPYRUS 'VISOR' SCRIPT  
LV 13  
HP 337.5/337.5 | 340   
AT 30   
DF 10   
* HE'S JUST TIRED. WANTS HIS BROTHER. GOING TO BE FINE.

He... Visor's HP was half of what usually what he and the others HP. He, Blue, Black, Noir, Tango, and Pyrus had around 680 HP. Green, G and all their brothers were a different case, their brother's had worryingly low HP but that was just them. Green and G were different cases altogether. 

But Visor? His HP was seemingly half, only... why did it say 337.5/337.5 |340? 

Not to mention his apparently sour relationship with his brother... They should be fine though right? Visor wanted his brother around, so, they weren't that bad with each other right?

...

Maybe he should keep an eye on them, Visor especially.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not actually sure that actual LV everyone is  
> but hey this is what im going for for visor  
> and i say the maintenance has been successful


	4. Before Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm glad this is going so well  
> i'm also glad that everyone's as excited for chine's spinal maintenance as i am ehehehe  
> we've got a lot of things to go to here  
> but this chapter isnt that much  
> mostly me trying to write axe and seeing things his way

* * *

"ARE YOU FINALLY FINISHED WITH MY VISOR?"  
"yeah yeah hold your fucking horses."

Tango frowned as he watched both brothers bicker, the worry in his SOUL was abated slightly but it didn't completely diminish. Visor's stats still clear in his head.

His AT and DF weren't that worrisome, despite being the same person AT and DF can vary, Noir, Black, Green and Bones had a higher AT than him and the others, but their HP was essentially the same with the exception of Green for obvious reasons. Around 680. 

Visor was at 340, or _should_ be according to his stats. And yet, his HP capped at 337.5, that... Tango has never really seen that before. Would Hop know about why that was? 

Chine did, he didn't seem worried about his brother's HP, he knows about it right? He was his brother, he would know when to worry about his own brother. 

But with how they interacted...

No, Tango has to stay optimistic. Visor's stats said that he wanted his brother around, this was probably a different version of Red, Noir, Black and Mutt's complicated relationship! He's heard of how rough it had been for them, and saw how rough it was for Black and Mutt. This was just like that, yeah...

And yet he still couldn't help but worry.

"there. it's on your stupid face, now- wha-Hey! Ow!" Chine yelped when Visor roughly shoved him away after attaching Visor's visor back on his face, so those bumps on the side of his face really were for his mask? Chine snarled slightly, "ungrateful brat." He scoffs with a scowl.

Rough relationship, rough relationship. _Rough relationship_ -

At least the horrible hole on Visor's face was now out of sight?

Tango still felt terrible though, since now he knew what was underneath the screen on Visor's face he probably could never forget about it. He watched though, as the mask activated. Symbols, were those wingdings? Flash through screen before disappearing. Two digital eyelights appear on the screen, blinking once, twice, thrice- "FINALLY. THE REPRIEVE WAS NICE AND ALL BUT I APPRECIATE THE ABILITY TO SEE." Visor says, standing up and _stretching_.

_pop pop pop_

" _MWEH?!_ "  
" _NYEH?!_ "  
" _NYEHEH!?_ "  
" _fuck_."

A-Ah- _he--_

"shit not him too." Red cursed from their group, his namesake dusting his face. What did he mean by ' _not him too?!_ ' 

Tango's face burned orange as Visor craned his neck, letting the cervical vertebrae pop and sound out. "O-Oh my." Tango muttered, feeling flustered from the sound. Bones, Blue and Axe were also affected in the same way though Axe was palming his face, muttering something underneath his breath. 

Chine seemed unaffected, bemused even, but when he glanced over to them his bemusement turned into complete amusement and he started to snicker to himself. Visor rubbed his neck, giving his brother a deadpanned look, "WHAT'S SO FUNNY?" He asked warily, digital eyes narrowed in suspicion. 

"nothin'... but you might want to know that apparently bone poppin' and crackin' ain't that cool here. it's 'inappropriate' or something." Chine told him, did he really not know?! Or was it that somehow not a big of a deal in their universe?

Visor looked genuinely confused, "WHAT? WHY? IT'S JUST OUR BONES POPPING AND AN ACT OF RELIEVING STRESS." As if to demonstrate he crossed his arms, straightening one arm before twisting his chest and _stretching-_ _**pop**!_ Went the arm and a satisfied deep groan escaped Visor. "MUCH BETTER, THAT ARM HAS BEEN BOTHERING ME EVER SINCE I WOKE UP." He said unashamedly, Chine seemed torn between laughing and nodding in agreement. He settled with laughter though.

_Did Visor not realize on how he sounded?! T-The pop and his **groan--**_

Tango was sure steam was coming out of his skull.

"i can't tell if either of you are just oblivious or just flat out shameless." Red said, the flush on his face having gotten brighter and bigger. "you really don't know on how inappropriate that is?!" 

Visor and Chine give him simultaneous confused looks of, 'Not really?' Though Chine seemed far more amused about the situation than his brother.

"D-DID NO ONE TELL YOU ABOUT THAT? IT IS NOT APPROPRIATE FOR A SKELETON TO POP AND CRACK THEIR JOINTS IN FRONT OF OTHERS OR IN PUBLIC!" Blue cried out, hiding his bright blue face behind his blue gloves, refusing to look at them both, or at anyone really. 

Visor blinked and frowned, "I... SEE... WELL, I'M SORRY FOR DOING SUCH A THING IN FRONT OF YOU ALL. BUT I STILL DON'T REALLY SEE HOW IT'S INAPPROPRIATE." He mused honestly. And Tango could tell it was honest, he was rather good in telling whether or not a person was honest or not. 

"guess we'll try to keep it in mind. but yeah, on a rare time i'm with him, don't really get on how it's inappropriate to do that shit. but what do we know?" Chine shrugged, looking back to his brother then back at them.

Bones takes in a calming breath, controlling the orange flush on his face rather well, "DO YOU REALLY NOT KNOW?" 

"no. 's not like we got a regular childhood." As soon as he said that, Chine's eyelights disappeared. A strange melancholic yet blank look on his face. Similarly Visor's back straightened and his own digital eyes disappeared. 

Red and Blue seemed to know something, or suspect at least since the color in their faces drained and their embarrassed looks replaced with strained looks instead. What did they know?

Chine's blue eyes returned and the blank look is replaced with a bland smile, "anyway, yeah. pops and cracks are out the door on public shit to do, we'll... well, we won't promise since we're pretty used to do that. but we'll make the effort. deal?" He offered, hands shoved into the pockets of his leather coat. 

"... deal." Axe said, a pointed frown on his face. 

Visor's eyes were back as well, "YES, DEAL INDEED. WE'LL MAKE THE EFFORT NOT TO DO THAT IN FRONT OF YOU." He agreed rather late after shaking his head and gathering his thoughts. "WELL, IT SEEMS THAT WE'VE BOTH CHOSEN OUR ROOMS?" He questions, glancing to his brother who gives a lazy nod.

"yeah, i found a comfy as room. way comfier than this place." Chine confirmed, a small happy grin on his face, "'s got a window bed." He seemed genuinely happy about that. 

Visor blinks and then pointedly rolled his eyes, "HOW WONDERFUL." He says dryly with a clear tone of sarcasm, Chine didn't seem to care. "SO WILL YOU BE FOREGOING A PERFECTLY GOOD BED FOR A CRAMPED SPACE UNDERNEATH THE WINDOW? UGH, DON'T ANSWER THAT, I ALREADY KNOW THE ANSWER. BUT THAT ASIDE, WE'VE CHOSEN OUR ROOMS, NOW WHAT?" He questioned, looking over to them, more to Red and Blue specifically.

What now indeed?

* * *

How dare your bro diss the window bed, he has no idea on how awesome it was to have a window bed. He didn't understand it and that was an honest to god shame, but you weren't going to enlighten him, he didn't deserve to be enlightened by the sheer amazingness that was a good window bed.

But that aside, he did ask a good question. Now what?

You both chose your rooms, what was next? Or was the day over and the other skeletons could possibly leave you and your brother alone so you could finally talk? 

"OH! UM..." Blue looked thoughtful, trying to think of what was next, was this it? Was it over? Don't get you wrong, this was amazing and kind of terrifying in a way but definitely amazing so far, but you wanted to both talk to your brother and then sleep for a thousand hours on your new window bed, gotta claim your territory and make it yours after all. "WELL IT'S TOO LATE TO GO CLOTHES SHOPPING FOR YOU TWO, SO WE'LL HAVE TO SCHEDULE THAT FOR TOMORROW! WE CAN GIVE YOU SOME PAJAMAS AND SPARE CLOTHES IN THE MEANWHILE?" Blue suggested, looking over you and your brothers clothing.

Sounds good to you, you're not too keen in sleeping in the clothing you have now. The button up shirt and thick baggy pants weren't really sleeping material, you'd like something softer. Or at least more comfortable to sleep in. Even a simple shirt would be better. "thanks blue, you've done great for us bud." You tell him because all this time he's been accommodating to you and your brother, you're grateful to whoever thought of Blue because really, he's such a cute and nice guy. He and Pyrus both, which will probably translate to almost half of the household here. 

Blue beams at you, "WHY THANK YOU!" 

"so who's lending us clothes?" You ask back and glance at each skeleton. Naturally a Sans will lend you clothes and a Papyrus will lend your brother clothes, but which one? 

"I CAN LEND YOU A SHIRT OR TWO." Bones tells your brother who's a bit startled.

Tango chimes in, "I CAN PROVIDE YOU PANTS!" 

What nice skeletons. You give Visor an amused expression as he flusters a bit, a slight tint of orange dusting the area underneath his visors. "O-OH! WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I'LL BE SURE TO RETURN THEM TO YOU BOTH AFTER I ACQUIRE MY OWN CLOTHING. CLEAN AND FOLDED OF COURSE." He replies, giving them a thankful smile. Bones and Tango both smile happily.

"NATURALLY!"  
"OF COURSE."

"AND I CAN PROVIDE _YOU_ WITH SHIRTS!" Blue exclaims, gaining your attention. 

Red looked hesitant before sighing and shrugging, "i should have like, a spare pair o' shorts if ya want." He offered.

Red was surprising but you weren't going to question it, "thanks. really appreciate it." That's another thing down for the count.

Before anyone else could say anything, simultaneously, a few dings sounded out. You all blink, wondering what was going on until everyone with the exception of you and your brother, took out their phones. "AH! IT SEEMS THAT DINNER IS ALMOST DONE! I BELIEVE IT'S TIME TO HEAD DOWNSTAIRS NOW!" Blue declared, grinning widely. 

Ah, so that was it. You're guessing that they're all in the same group chat to have gotten that message from who you assume to be Pyrus. "looks like it." Axe grunted, typing into the phone for a bit before pocketing it in his shorts. "my bro's comin' over now." He said, pleased. Oh right, you hadn't been able to meet Crooks despite being over at the cottage.

"my bro too, he just came back and he's with pyrus in the kitchen." Red informed you all, grinning. Him too, well, technically you were going to meet everyone now it seems.

Oh boy, this was going to be a lot of skeletons.

You give your brother a look, he gives you one back and shrug. 

You can't really avoid this, it was inevitable.

"MY BROTHER SHOULD BE DOWNSTAIRS WITH CLASSIC!" Bones chimed, a happy smile on his face.

Tango sighed, "MY BROTHER IS STILL OUT, BUT HE SHOULD BE BACK IN TIME FOR DINNER WITH STRETCH." Blue nodded to him.

Blue turns back to you and your brother, "TOMORROW WE'LL GET YOU BOTH PHONES AS WELL! IT WOULD BE BEST TO GET THEM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! THAT WAY YOU CAN JOIN OUR GROUP CHAT!" He exclaims, waving his phone that was in a blue case with yellow stars all over it. Makes sense, though as you look at the phone you wonder...

Did you have _it_?

You pat one of the pockets of your leather coat, not really feeling much at the outside of it. But that was normal, ish. You weren't suppose to feel what was inside the pocket of the leather coat, and you only had a vague knowledge of what was inside each pocket. Somewhat. You don't know if the gadgets and items you were actually thinking of were actually there in each or any of the pockets. For all you know, you didn't have anything in your pockets.

You'd have to check.

You and your brother both, you glance over to your brother and eye his jacket. Did _he_ have everything for your spine? If not, both yay and not yay. On one hand, you weren't too keen for your inevitable spine maintenance thing, but on the other if you _didn't_ have the spine maintenance- that'd obviously be bad for you.

Sure you could go without it for a long time, but eventually, you'd need it to keep the flexibility and mobility you had. Not to mention you're _really_ fond of living. 

Damn you and your brother's imaginative thoughts that created the metal spine and ribs that you now have.

If you had known you'd end up in the bodies of the AU skeletons you both made, you and your brother would have thought of something else instead! 

But who in the world would even think of that? No one actually _really_ expects to end up in the bodies of their creations. _No one_.

Shaking your head, you get out of your thoughts just in time to see the others starting to leave the room. Axe gives you a concerned look when he was the only one to notice you not moving yet, there was also a strange look on his face, you send him a pair of finger guns with an easy smile, hiding the strain as you subtly hurry after them. 

You'd be fine.

You were going to be fine.

You and your brother would check the items on your person while talking, or maybe afterwards. Gotta take in everything that you had in hand and use anything useful maybe for work. 

Which is another thing you'll have to think about.

Later though.

* * *

There was something off with the new skeleton brothers.

There was no doubt about that, they were a strange bunch- but then again, all pairs of skeleton brothers were a shade of strange. Axe and his brother were no different even if it leaned more to the dark side, but not anymore. They could anytime they wanted, they could eat almost anything they wanted. Human was off the roster though, the others made that very clear.

Axe wasn't going to complain, despite having eaten human he never really liked the taste of it. But what else could he and his brother eat in the starving underground? 

No, don't think about that anymore, they weren't there. They were in a new universe, on the surface, capable of doing so much more compared to when they were trapped underground. 

Out of all of the brothers, they didn't want to go back to their universe. Who would want to go back to such poverty and famine after living this new life? Papyrus was happy, he was okay, things were great. Even if the other brothers weren't that comfortable around him. Oh sure they made the effort, but Axe could tell they weren't that comfortable around them, not for a long period of time and especially not alone. 

That was fine, they didn't need the validation or company of the others. However, it wasn't that fine in the beginning, when both he and his brother had to deal with the tension from the others- admittedly, Axe had snapped at them. He didn't attack them, his brother was there to ground him enough to not do that, but he had screamed at the other versions of himself. 

After that? Well, things were a little better. The tension lightened, it wasn't gone entirely, but the others now knew that he and his brother could be trusted. It wasn't perfect but it was fine.

They were happy together in that little cottage at the edge of the property. 

However, now there was a new resident in their little cottage, a strange alternate Sans that went by Chine. 

A strange nickname, not many people knew it but 'chine' meant a backbone. Especially on an animal, or a cut across the backbone of meat. 

Not only that but Chine genuinely didn't seem too bothered by his appearance. Even Blue and Pyrus had been frightened and wary of his appearance and whole apparent demeanor at first. They tried to hide it and get over it but a lot of people would be scared by a skeleton with one glowing scarlet eye, sharp teeth and a fractured skull with a hole. Lugging around his axe didn't help either. Nor did the red bloodstains that were on his jacket- they were ketchup stains of course. Mostly. 

And if they were bloodstains, they were _animal_ bloodstains, not human.

He wasn't going to go back on his word.

If he did he was sure the residences of the skeletal main mansion would hunt him down and turn him to dust.

Back to Chine... 

The first time they met on the porch, Axe decided to pull on his intimidating personality as a little test. Nothing that threatening, not obviously at least. He'd just teleport on the porch with his axe in hand. If someone wanted to live in the cottage with his brother and he, he wasn't going to complain, but they had to be sure. 

He wasn't expecting just one skeleton to come, even when Red told him in his message, he'd expected two skeletons. 

What he actually got was Chine, who just looked at him with those dim blue eyes of his. No fear, not one trace of it in his sockets and eyelights. No, he seemed curious, awe'd even. Something Axe never expected, ever. The smaller skeleton blinked and then lifted his glove covered hand to give him a two-fingered salute, face still casually curiously awed, "sup," He had said, an easy grin on his face, "nice to meet ya big guy."

Axe had been stunned, enough to shuffle back a bit.

And from there, he continued to act so strangely.

He didn't hesitate to follow Axe, trusting him to take the lead. He wasn't intimidated by his demeanor, his height, by his looks, Chine looked amused even. 

Axe didn't know what to think of him.

And then Chine took off his coat, but not his scarf. That was fine.

Chine stretching right in front of them however? That was _not_ fine.

Chine, as well as his brother apparently, were the only skeletons he'd ever met that had no idea on how inappropriate it was to do that in front of others who were either your family, close friends or even your lover. 

Embarrassment colored his skull, just like it colored Red's skull. However, he still noticed something off from the popping. Something that didn't sit right.

Axe couldn't really put a finger on it though, what was so off about it? Aside from the fact Chine decided to _that_ in front of him and Red.

When he showed Chine the rooms, he didn't think much on what room Chine would choose. Not until he chose the room with the window bed, it was kind of a similar room to Papyrus' room. He had a window bed seat as well. 

But when Chine chose the room the instant he saw the window bed seat, there was something there on his face. Something nostalgic, something wistful, something _painful_.

"always wanted a good place like this... no smog or smoke here, maybe i can finally see the stars again." 

Did Chine have a place like this before? As a Sans, he wasn't surprised that he liked the stars. Hell, both Sans and Papyrus had a shared love for stars.

Axe could remember the countless nights he and Papyrus looked out the window at night, watching the stars for hours. 

Seemed like Chine couldn't see the stars due to smog or smoke, Axe had to wonder where he and his Papyrus lived before. Was it somewhere heavily industrial? Somewhere with enough smoke that covered the sky and blocked the sight of the stars at night?

That... seemed sad.

Axe felt sympathy for him at that moment, and a bit of happiness because Chine could now see the stars tonight. He and his brother both.

He had to wonder on why they weren't sleeping in the same building, Chine would be sleeping in his and his brother's cottage while Visor would be sleeping in the main mansion. 

That thought was thrown out the window when he saw the picture that Blue sent Red that picture of Chine's brother. 

If he had an anatomically correct human heart, it'd stop beating right there and then.

Visor had a _hole_ on his face. 

The top of his face, his forehead, nasal area and sockets were just, _gone_. Leaving a jagged hole that reminded him terribly of his own hole on his own skull. And yet, Visor had it so much worse than him. 

_How the hell did that happen?_

Chine didn't look surprised, his face was blank as he said, "guess he finally took that thing off." In such a dry tone, Axe had to give him an incredulous look. This was his _brother_ , how could he just say it like that? 

"take me to visor."

At least he was concerned? In a way? His face was still blank, and his tone still dry and uninterested...

Axe thought he was missing something. There had to be something they weren't seeing here because there was no way a Sans existed that _didn't_ care for his own brother. 

Right?

...

He didn't want to think of a possibility that there were.

Hopefully Chine wasn't that kind of Sans.

And he wasn't.

Not really?

He cared for his brother, if he didn't care, he wouldn't have helped his brother. He wouldn't have fiddled with his brother's visor and put it back on his face- sure they bickered, they argued and cursed each other, but this was just... a unique part of their relationship. Like with both pair brothers of Red and Noir as well as Black and Mutt. 

Only Visor cursed back, frequently. And wasn't afraid to shove Chine back.

But at least Red, Mutt and their bros were doing better. 

Better than Chine and Visor at least.

Chine and Visor were strange skeletons, conceringly strange skeletons.

Especially after what Bones told the rest of them.

What kind of HP was 337.5/337.5 |340?

Not only was Visor's HP half his brother's HP, it was... in decimals? He had no idea what the fuck was happening there.

And then another thought came to Axe's head.

If _that_ was Visor's state; hole in his face, HP halved and somehow in decimals... what were Chine's stats? What was _his_ state?

The strange popping came back into his mind the moment Visor popped his bones in front of them. He noticed the difference immediately. " _sounds more organic._ " Axe muttered to himself, thinking back to Chine's unfortunate popping. Back then it sounded more, metallic? The type of popping you'd expect from something made of... metal...

...

Visor's nickname was visor, which obviously referenced his visor mask screen device.

Chine's nickname? Metallic sounds from popping and cracking his bones? 

_Was Chine's spine made of metal?_

As Red, Blue, Tango and Bones offered their clothing towards Chine and Visor, Axe thought on how Chine kept a scarf around his neck, was it to hide his metal spine? Was his spine really made of metal? If so, what had happened? 

The Skelebrother Group Chat broke him out of his thoughts for a moment, Pyrus telling everyone that dinner was almost ready and that they should head over soon. Oh, that was neat. Food time. 

His brother replied shortly, he was coming. That was good.

He hadn't gotten to meet Chine despite them being at the cottage earlier on, his bro had been busy with the garden while Axe was busy showing Chine the rooms. Guess Papyrus would officially meet Chine at tonight's dinner.

Soon, it was time to actually get downstairs to wait for dinner and for the rest of the skeleton residents to come home for said dinner.

Axe was about to leave with them when he noticed Chine standing in place, a strange look on his face, his eyes were dimmed down to the point they were almost totally gone. Was something troubling him? 

Whatever it was, Chine seemed to snap out of it, shaking his head and spotting his concerned gaze. Chine instantly brought up an easy smile and gave him a pair of finger guns, Axe would snort if he didn't suspect Chine's actual emotions at the moment, Axe knew what Chine was trying to do. It was something that he and the others did all the time, act casual and that nothing was wrong. 

Chine was doing it the whole time- or maybe not, he hadn't feigned the fact he wasn't scared of Axe but... he was surprisingly accommodating to everything.

Had it been that bad for him and the others at the start? 

Maybe.

Chine hurried after the rest, and as soon as Chine passed him, Axe followed.

There'd be time to find out everything, or at least enough in the future. Chine and Visor would be staying until the machine could finally and actually work it's damn purpose. 

Which would no doubt be a while. 

So they had time to get to know the brothers.

And also help them along the way.

Axe would keep an eye on them, Chine especially. 

The theory and thought of a metal spine had him glancing towards Chine's back and covered neck. He then glanced at the back of Visor's skull as he chatted with Tango, Blue and Bones. 

He wondered if those two incidents, hypothetically speaking if Chine had a metal spine like he thought, were connected somehow?

Axe didn't know it, but it was connected in a way.

In one, terribly angst-filled way.

* * *

_ You feel **numb--** _ **_ C R U N C H _ **

Your body suddenly gives a violent shiver from your tail bone to the top of your spine, it's enough that you completely stop on the step of the stairs and cease your conversation.

What the hell was that??

Bones, Tango and Blue give you a concerned look, "VISOR ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Bones asked as you hold your forehead, or rather the screen of your mask. It slightly blocks your vision before shaking your head.

"I'M FINE. IT JUST FELT LIKE SOMEONE WAS STOMPING ON MY GRAVE." Instinctively, you look back to your brother who actually looked alarmed. 

He raises his hands up in surrender, "dude i'm just right here. much as i'd _love_ to do that, you're alive, and i'm right here behind you." He points out dryly, you roll your eyes at him. That wasn't what you were trying to do but sure why not, you wanted to know if he felt it too or if it was just you? Behind him, Axe unintentionally or maybe intentionally? Looms over your brother, but you're not too bothered by that. 

"AND HERE I THOUGHT YOU GOT LOST ON THE STAIRS." You snark back, it's weak, but you're not too concerned about that. You shake your head again, "IT'S NOTHING, I'M FINE. IT'S PROBABLY NOTHING." You wave off and continue down the stairs like nothing happened, because nothing did happen.

Everything was fine.

Blue hesitates, "I-IF YOU'RE SURE."

You've made things a bit awkward, go you, you're just doing _great_ as a Papyrus aren't you?

Out of all the characters you'd end up, you never really thought of ending up as a Papyrus. Much less Prosthesis Papyrus. But then again you never thought you'd end up in a fictional character anyway.

Still, Papyrus? Sure, he was basically your favorite skeleton brother, but you're sure you're not a good Papyrus.

You think, it's hard to remember everything.

And now wasn't a good time to remember anything anyway, it was hard enough to continue on like this- you never really knew how much you blinked before but it was a bit weird, being able to keep your 'eyes' open for so long. To have your vision go on without blinking. Not to mention the visor itself is snug and perfect on your face, perfectly covering the hole and giving you your sense of sight. And you felt tall, taller than you used to be, but it still feels natural to you. Which is good, you don't want to look like an idiot while stumbling around.

A part of you doesn't want to be part of the upcoming dinner, but the louder and more rational part of you is insisting to go. Might as well get it over with, and you were actually hungry. Which was weird because you don't have a stomach, how the hell would you digest the food?

Oh right, the answer for practically everything vaguely mysterious in this universe- _magic_.

You're going to get a headache with that answer you just know it, you can feel it at the back of your head.

At any rate, you continue down the stairs, resuming the conversation with Bones, Tango and Blue. They're great skeletons, though Bones was more subdued and mature. Which is good, you don't mean anything about Tango and Blue but their energetic optimism is already wearing down on your own energy reserves as it is. Not to mention you were going to reunite with Pyrus and meet _other_ rather energetic, eccentric and loud skeletons.

Which kind of reminds you of your own new voice, it was moderately loud, with its own inflection and tone but at its natural state, you feel like- and you _swear_ it feels like this and you're _not even kidding_ \- like you're talking in all _CAPITALS_. Which was _weird_ , and your brother, naturally he seemed to speak without capitals at all.

How the hell do you deal with that information?

What do you _do_ with that information?

Sigh, just, another strange thing to chalk up to turning into a Papyrus. 

"THIS IS A RATHER GRANDIOSE DINING ROOM YOU HAVE." You can't help but comment as you all arrive at the large dining room. "DOES EVERYONE EAT HERE ALL THE TIME FOR EVERY MEAL OR...?" You trail off, looking at the large table that was more than large enough to hold eighteen skeletons.

Red snorted, "nah, not all the time. we have like, once or twice a monthly dinners where all of us are together but other than that we eat where we want to eat but not in here, mostly in the kitchen or like the living room and other rooms and shit. but it was kinda established that whenever new bros come in, we all eat together. got turned into a tradition i guess." He admitted, huh, okay. That was nice actually.

"INDEED!" Tango beamed with Blue, "IT'S ONLY RIGHT! WE WELCOME NEW ARRIVALS WITH THE WARMEST OF WELCOMES AND THE GREATEST OF FOODS! ALSO IT'S RATHER NICE TO EAT TOGETHER! THE MORE THE MERRIER!" He declared, posing rather dramatically- was that a dancing pose? You're not one for dancing, your brother's more in tune for that. But you're more fascinated by the way the tail of his red sash was dramatically flapping in nonexistent wind. There wasn't a draft in here, you'd notice but how-?

Suddenly your vision tints in darker colors with wisps of lighter colors moving around. It's a magic scan? Oh right, your visor's multifaceted and very handy.

Your visor brings in the complete scan and, and--

_Oh stars._

_Tango is using **magic** to move his sash._

That is- _**incredible**._

Did he do it consciously? Unconsciously? He's- he's using, _magic_ to move the tail of his _sash **dramatically**_. 

Could you do that? 

Blue beams brighter and he's posing too- _oh fucking stars he's doing it too_ \- "MWEHEHEHE! WELL SAID TANGO! THE MORE THE MERRIER!"

_This was great._

A chuckle escapes your mouth, and you have to cover your mouth in an effort to stop yourself from laughing. "I-I- YES, THAT SOUNDS _WONDERFUL_ YOU TWO." You agree, swallowing your laughter and amusement. For some reason, both Tango and Blue beam even brighter and you swear to the sky, these two were going to kill you with their adorableness and optimism. Not to mention their hilarity. You can spy Bones smiling fondly for some reason but you pay him no mind in your cheerful mood.

Stars above, there were some perks to your situation after all.

"NYEH! AHA! HELLO EVERYONE!!" A familiar voice exclaims, the owner strolling into the room from where you're theorizing the kitchen was, or at least the direction of the kitchen was. It was Pyrus, with two other skeletons coming behind him. "DINNER IS ALMOST DONE! PLEASE HELP ME SET THE TABLE!! VISOR, CHINE, YOU'RE FREE TO CHOOSE WHERE YOUR SEATS ARE!" 

One of the skeletons was Skull, who brightens at the sight of his brother, the other skeleton wasn't someone you met but know well. It was Crooks. 

He's taller than Pyrus even when's hunching slightly, lumbering over him rather shyly. Axe makes a sound, "hey bro." He greets softly and Crooks' posture straightens a bit and he makes the effort to smile at his brother. It seems painful almost with his crooked teeth, however he doesn't seem pained, or maybe he's just used to it.

Your cheerful mood dampens a bit.

"BROTHER." Crooks replies, voice still loud- he sounds like Pyrus, only his tone is hoarser, and a tad bit deeper. "YOU MUST BE CHINE. I APOLOGIZE I WASN'T AVAILABLE TO GREET YOU AT THE COTTAGE." He says, turning to your brother, and your brother, the fool was awestruck at the tall skeleton. He grins at Crooks, Crooks look taken back while Axe's near mirroring grin widens.

"hey, 's fine bud. nice to meet you housemate, hope you won't mind me bein' around you an' your bro." He replies, fearlessly offering his hand for Crooks to shake. Crooks hesitates but gladly takes it, seemingly happier. 

Your brother always did love Horrortale. It was a bit of an effort to keep your brother from turning Prosthesis AU into something like Horrortale. Which was good because as much as you liked Horrortale, you don't think you can handle the horrible things you and your brother would think for that.

Things were bad enough as it is in Prosthesis AU, maybe even worse in a way...

Either way, maybe dinner wasn't going to be that bad.

Hopefully.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the dinner arc will be used to mostly introduce all the skeletons and usher them officially into the story scene  
> i was going to do it all at once but decided to change my mind  
> also if you can't tell, i'm totally going for axe to be with chine, maybe both horrortale brothers go for chine, who knows ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
> also also i'm not that good with puns which is why you haven't seen them that much but i will make the effort to make them during dinner itself


	5. Preparing Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for very the late chapter  
> i was sick, distracted and admittedly already came up with writer's block. not to mention some stuff came up but here we are!  
> also naturally while i was sick earlier this month a new idea came into mind and i don't know whether to implement it or not  
> or even make it into a new story

* * *

There were pros and cons to everything in life, no matter what, there would always be a downside and an upside. Depending on how you see it.

And this here? 

Was a _pro_.

You grin up to Crooks as you do a mutual and normal handshake.

He looked so cool, he was so _tall_ \- he and Axe naturally didn't have bloodstains, well, Crooks didn't. There were suspicious dark spots on Axe's hoodie but that was fine, it made it cooler even, made _him_ cooler. Just like his brother.

Okay so you were a horror movie buff, you liked gore and scary shit, so Horrortale was definitely an AU that you liked and appreciated to the fullest. You found their AU delightful, but pitiable naturally since the circumstances that they were in was nothing to laugh at.

No one liked to go through starvation, you weren't appalled or disgusted at the fact that they had eaten humans in Horrortale, they had to do what they had to to survive that unfair circumstances that fell on their world. 

And besides, it didn't look like they were practicing that anymore here in this universe with you. Not that you can tell anyway, for all you know the suspicious stains on Axe's hoodie were ketchup or animal blood, or just other types of stains that left dark spots on blue fabric. You weren't going to judge. 

You don't think that Classic and the others would be okay with the Horror brothers eating humans, so that was another big clue as to their situation now. 

Which was great! They seemed happy here, which was also great, fantastic really! You felt happy that they were happy, they could eat all they want now, and almost whatever they wanted- again, human was clearly off the menu. It was great that they found a place to be happy in. 

And besides, you never really minded Horror-er, _Axe_ , eating humans before. You certainly weren't going to start minding now even though it's horrible, let's just say you weren't really the most moral person? Yeah let's just say that. You don't endorse cannibalism, is it cannibalism if you aren't a human? Nor do you approve of senseless slaughter. 

But that doesn't really change the fact that you don't mind the nitty, gritty dark things that you knew. 

As long as Axe and Crooks were happy, you were happy.

You let go of Crook's hand, grinning up to the tall monster, seriously, he was taller than Pyrus! Even when he was slouching! "I CERTAINLY DON'T MIND AT ALL." Crooks finally replied to your earlier words, though he's glancing between you and your brother, you already know what's going on his mind. Why weren't you bunking in the same place as your brother? Well, for a lot of reasons, but you weren't going to go into it. You doubt you will on your own, maybe if they asked flat out but you hope they don't. You don't need to remind yourself with a full on explanation right now, it would ruin your mood. Maybe next time, just not now.

So with that, you continue to grin at him, "tha's good, bro there already chose his room and i chose mine." You tell him, gaining his attention, "i chose the room with the window bed. props 'n thanks to you for keepin' it clean by the way, both that room and the other one." You compliment him honestly, you can see the surprise and happiness in his sockets. 

"OF COURSE. IT WOULDN'T MAKE SENSE TO LET BOTH ROOMS GRADUALLY TURN DUSTY AND DIRTY FROM NO ONE OCCUPYING THEM!" Crooks replied, you nod with him, that made sense. But you know you wouldn't do the same, your brother probably would- heh, he really was a Papyrus wasn't he? You glance at him, he's distracted with talking with the other Papyruses plus Blue. 

Good for him you guess, but if only he'd ended up as another type of Papyrus. 

No use into thinking that however, so you look back at Crooks who's now talking to Axe and Skull. "I BELIEVE IT'S TIME WE PREPARE THE TABLE. DINNER IS ALMOST DONE SO WE MUST SET THE PLATES FOR EVERYONE." He says loudly, gaining Pyrus' attention. 

Pyrus perked, "NYEHEHEH! YES INDEED! COME NOW, WE MUSTN'T DAWDLE!" Wow, you never really heard anyone say 'dawdle' outside of like, British movies and tv shows. And even then those were rare, you never knew people could actually say 'dawdle' out loud or use it. But hey, power to Pyrus. And both he and Crooks made good points, it was time to set up the table for everyone.

You and your brother were obviously going to help, you may be new and current guests but soon you'd both be staying with the skeletons for a more semi-permanent amount of time. Which was...

...

You were going to stay in a place that you'd only imagine in your mind, among fictional characters who were apparently _real_ and in a body that was not yours. Said body had problems, problems that _you_ made come into fruition. 

You were so far away from home, something you can't even remember right now for some unfathomable reason. 

Your memories are muddled and uncertain and you're not even sure on what your original name was.

What a situation you were in.

You take in a deep breath, clutching something made of porcelain- a plate. What were you doing again? Fuck, you can't remember. Just like how you can't remember what happened before you woke up _in a body **that wasn't yours**_ \--

_Whack_

You yelp, nearly dropping the plate from the somewhat vicious whack to your skull, it was hard enough for you to nearly smack face first into the glass cabinet. Behind you, your brother scowls at you while holding a few plates up himself, he's the one who hit your skull. Behind _him_ , everyone else stared at you both with wide sockets. Not that you're noticing them right now, you're glaring daggers at your brother who squint his stupid digital eyes at you.

"STOP SPACING OUT LIKE A FUCKING IDIOT AND HELP US. ACTUALLY BE USEFUL FOR ONCE WHY DON'T YOU?!" He barks, one hand on his hip and looking impatient as fuck. There's no visible concern on your brother's face, but you know despite that, he was actually concerned for you. However you're irritated that he had to hit your head so hard, not to mention the tone of his voice puts an annoyed scowl on your face.

"yeah yeah i'm movin'. don't com _plate_ 'bout it." You tell him, smirking as you raise the plate in your hand. He narrows his eyes at you, "i got _dish_." There's a few weak snickers in the background but you revel in it even it was strangely quiet, you don't know, you think it was good.

Hey, you were a Sans now. You just _had_ to pun, you already liked puns so this was a veritable pro in your personal opinion. Your brother in kind didn't hate them but he certainly didn't usually enjoy them either. 

"I DESPISE YOUR EXISTENCE."

"hehehe. ditto and right back at you, wanna _toast_ to it?"

* * *

Noir wasn't expecting much from the newest pair of brothers that came into their abode, though it was certainly _strange_ to know that only one pair came this time when the past it had been consistent that there was at least two or more pairs of brothers that came through- but who knows. This may be a sign that his brother and the other versions of his brother were actually getting close to fixing the damned machine that brought them all here.

Truly who knows with that damnable thing.

 _~~He doesn't want to admit he likes it here. That he's grown soft. That he's~~ _ ~~changed~~ _~~or what he was scared to go back.~~ _

At any rate, with two new skeletons within the household, that meant two new seats were now filled at the large table of their dining room. Which was adequate he supposed, the table was ridiculously large but it did its job in letting them dine on it whenever they all got together, and it had more than enough room for other people to join in.

Even when this universe's human came with the other versions of the monsters that he knew, there had been a few seats to spare when they had all been present to dinner. 

It had really been the right choice to purchase this ridiculously large mansion. 

It was far more suitable for someone of his tastes and had more than enough room for any other poor sap that came by, either by machine or just visiting. Though there was now one less guest room now that... Visor was it? Was choosing to stay within the mansion. His brother, Chine? Apparently preferred the cottage and was strangely more than willing to part with his brother and sleep apart from him.

It was none of Noir's business, but even he found that a bit weird.

He found it even weirder when he met the wayward brothers after stomping into the dining room area to ~~ask~~ _demand_ assistance in transporting the large amount of food and sustenance to the table. 

From the worries of what Pyrus had told him while they had been cooking and the cautious murmurs from Skull and Classic, he'd been expecting someone more like himself or Black, a rough skeleton that had _~~anger issues~~_ a type of confidence and possibly well deserved arrogance. He'd been expecting Visor's brother to be more like Red or Black, a pitiful brother who was _~~dark but caring~~_ bark and bite but submissive towards the clearly more dominant and better brother. At the very _least_ , he expected brothers that were a _little_ bit like Axe and Crooks.

He was expecting brothers from a world that was too close for comfort like his, or Black's, or Axe's or maybe even Bones' universes. They had come from a war-torn world correct? They must be strong, must be hardened and must be warriors, Pyrus had been alluding that Visor had been like himself before he and his brother... _understood_ each other on a better level than before.

_~~He didn't have to be so harsh. Sans didn't have to be so rough. They were in a soft world, no one would persecute them for showing affection. **It was not kill or be killed here.**~~ _

He _instead_ got were two brothers who weren't like him, his brother or even Black and his brother at all.

If anything, Visor was like Bones in terms of looks, a few mostly unseen scratches on his skull but with that very noticeable screen stuck to his face. However just for that it meant that Visor and his brother weren't to be underestimated, Bones wasn't a skeleton to take lightly at all after all. Not to mention there was the unmistakable feeling in Noir that whispered to him, warned him on how dangerous Visor could be.

For all he and his brother looked, Visor and Chine didn't seem to come from a war world.

However looks weren't everything, take Blue for example or even _Pyrus_ , despite how soft they looked and innocent their combined personality was- they were still formidable opponents to go against. Their occasional spars proved that much, someone who could go head to head with Noir himself and even Black, definitely not weak in terms of power and skill.

It made him wonder on how Visor and Chine would fare in a spar, or even an official battle. 

He had yet met a version of himself and his brother who had utterly no battle skills. And frankly, he wanted to keep it that way. 

Noir would never want to meet someone who couldn't throw a simple attack or survive an encounter with a decent monster. 

Anyway, back to the present; Noir met Visor and chine after storming into the dining room to gain assistance in transporting the large amount of food into said dining room. For however impressive Noir was and even with Black's help, it would take far too long to haul everything into the dining room and their food would get cold which could _not_ happen. Besides, Black was finishing up the last meal so he couldn't really help at the moment.

"BROTHER! I EXPECT YOU TO ASSIST ME AT ONCE! WE HAVE MANY DELICACIES THAT MUST BE TAKEN INTO THIS ROOM!" Noir grouched out to ~~the pest~~ his brother. Red grinned back, giving him a lazy thumbs up, "SPEAK UP!" 

"yeah yeah i got it. i'm helping." 

"I'LL HELP AS WELL." Crooks volunteered. The lumbering skeleton hunching over a bit more as always, Noir's usual frown deepened at that. He had no problem with his, unfortunately taller other, but you'd think with his domineering stature he would be more confident in himself. Noir understood that Crooks didn't exactly find himself good to look at but still, as the alternate version of himself, he should have more confidence. At the very least he wasn't like _Stretch_ or _Mutt_. Now _those two_... The less said about the obvious the better.

But Noir didn't dare voice it aloud, Axe was already protective over his brother, and though Noir would totally win against the imbecile it would ultimately waste time.

"i'll help too." And naturally since Crooks was volunteering, Axe came close behind. 

"me too. might as well, better than staying here with that bastard." 

Noir blinked his sockets, admittedly he didn't expect that. Chine grinned at him with his dim blue eyelights, the scratches on his skull were more prominent, with the cracked scar underneath his socket traveling to his nasal bone being the most noticeable. "YES, GIVE ME THE PEACE HOWEVER SHORT IT WILL BE AND GO ACTUALLY BE USEFUL FOR ONCE INSTEAD OF BEING A PATHETIC WASTE OF SPACE." Visor huffed, shaking his head and snatching the plate from Chine's hands.

"trust me i'll be enjoying the peace too." Chine promised, uncaring at the fact he was leaving his brother alone in a foreign place no matter how safe it claimed to be, the insult washing over him like harmless water. 

He and Red didn't leave each other's visual peripherals for days the first time they came into this universe, it went the same for the other brothers, they always stayed close and in the line of each other's sight. Not to mention that type of insult- it wouldn't really affect Red but he himself had stopped from regularly making those insults. He never meant them, but he's not too sure about Visor...

This was... unprecedented. 

However, this was none of his business. Noir was in charge here for food tonight and so he would be focusing on distributing said food unto the dining table for everyone to feast on. Brotherly relationships should be dealt with at a later matter _after_ the feast. 

"VERY WELL! COME NOW! IT'S ALMOST TIME FOR DINNER!" Noir snapped, gaining their attention. 

With that, he turned on his heel and briskly walked out of the dining room and right towards the kitchen. He heard various footsteps follow after him.

* * *

Everyone was just as you expected and yet kind of not. 

Like the _~~loser~~ _fan that you were, you always wondered on what your favorite characters would be like should you meet them in real life or something. What they would look like, how they would act, how things would go-

This could be a fan's absolute and simultaneous dream and or nightmare. You never knew with what could happen after all.

Right now for example, you did expect Black to be like Blue in a way but be more like Black. He was Fellswap Sans after all, and yes it was Fellswap not Swapfell, hell it wasn't even Fellswap Gold, or Violet. Just Fellswap 'Red'. 

He was Blue's height, a few inches higher with those red heeled boots of his and his eyes were red just like Noir and Red, the scar he had was on the opposite socket compared to Noir- really Swapped versions of them huh? At any rate though, Black was almost as intimidating as Noir...

Almost.

Why?

_He was wearing a velvet apron was why._

It was hard to be even slightly intimidated by a person- skeleton? In an apron. Personally to you anyway. 

There was just something at the fact they were wearing an _apron_ that just, doesn't make them seem scary to you. But that was cooking and baking aprons, you weren't creeped out by anyone who wore baking or cooking aprons, even if they were covered in blood. If anything you think they look cool with bloody cooking and or baking aprons- medical aprons on the other hand were something you were more wary about. 

You don't why you're like that, you just are.

Or at least, that's what you thought.

For some reason the thought of a blood ~~_dust_~~ covered medical apron sent a horrible chill down your spine.

_ You hate them. They were always covered in blood and dust and the rare times they weren't it lingered around them in the air. They say what they're doing is for the greater good of the country. For life itself. But you still hate them despite what all the others say. Your dust and blood joins them frequently whenever they come over. Papyrus' dust and blood does too. He says it's okay but you know he hates them too. You definitely feel like your hate is justified.  _

"you a'ight there dude?" Axe rumbled behind you and snapping you right out of your thoughts. 

That was... fucking weird, okay. "yeah i'm fine." You reply, shaking your head and you offer a sheepish smile to the unimpressed apron-wearing Black. "sorry about that, just tired and hungry." You fib.

Black narrowed his sockets at him, "SO YOU SAY..." It's clear he doesn't believe you but thankfully he doesn't say anything otherwise. Also, he sounds like Blue, only a bit raspier and there's an instinctive tone of harshness in it. You give him a smile and watch him scoff. "JUST GET TO WORK." He barked, motioning to the absolute feast that was already awaiting the counters and table-

 _Stars bright above_ that was a fucking lot of food! It actually looked good! You've rarely ever seen this much food before! Aside from television, you haven't seen this amount of food in years! Tonight would definitely be a feast. However you're still not sure on how it will taste however, but you hope it'll be okay, you've read plenty about how the skeletons cooked and how their skills varied from skeleton to skeleton- Black and Noir should at least be edible right? And telling by the smell, they were _good_. You hope that in the time they spent here, they managed to help their alternates in cooking because you'd rather avoid food poisoning if you can help it.

You and your brother were fine with cooking, you weren't starred chefs or anything but you were good enough that you both wouldn't have to worry about food poisoning and shit like that. However you vaguely remember buying a lot more take out in the past... you don't remember _but_ , you and your brother probably had been too lazy or busy to make actual food so you had plenty of take out. So yeah, cooking? You and your brothers were fairly fine. _Baking_ however... Well, you and your brother do like your sweets so you'd like to say that you were both more than good at that.

You both even learned how to make ice cream from scratch.

You gotta make some when you can. That's another thing noted in your mind then.

"move it chine." Red tells you, walking past you towards the plates of steaming and cooling foods. "don't just stand there gawking." His taller brother snorts, looking pleased as he handed Red two plates to carry. Axe and Crooks start to walk past you as you shake your head.

"oi, i don't gawk. i just- i haven't seen this much food in a while. like, wow, holy shit, real cooked food in how many months of take out. and rations." You say, quickly tacking on rations as a last second addition. The other skeletons pause and look at you, you probably should've just stopped at 'haven't seen this much food in a while'. Damn your mind, outwardly though you shrug and step forward to catch up with Axe and Crooks. 

"Rations?" Crooks repeated softly as you stop in front a big plate that would probably need both hands. You glance at him and look away in guilt as it clicks, right. Horrortale, lack of food, rations- shit, you really should've kept your mouth shut and not add in rations. 

_ "How much food do we have left?" Papyrus asks you, making you pause. You shove the welding mask up and look at him, he looks tired, and hungry. You're tired and hungry too, but you have work to do. You can't sleep, or eat right now. Papyrus can do that first, he probab-no, he definitely needs it more than you. You tell him there's enough for the week, more if they eat carefully. You'll try to eat less than Papyrus, give him most of it. However you both have to acquire more rations eventually, but you can't leave yet. Not with the bounty hunters after you both, you need to lay low for a while again... You make a mental note to stock up the food rations in all your safe houses. Maybe if you're lucky, you can order take out sometime this week if you plan it out carefully. _

However, that was the reality for Chine. For Prosthesis Sans, _he_ had to eat rations and occasionally take out. He and his brother, they rarely had actual cooked food or baked goods in your universe. Usually for celebrations, or when it was a really bad day and they had the supply and equipment for it. 

"yeah, rations." You say monotoned, "normal thing when there's like, a war going on. not enough food for everyone sometimes." That was the truth, but not _your_ truth. You've never had rations before, never _had_ to ration. Sure you and your brother hoarded food for yourselves, a hard habit to grow out of, but you were fairly well fed. You never had to starve like Crooks, Axe, like the original Chine and Visor had.

You don't see the darkened look Axe wears nor the softly sympathetic stare Crooks has for you. The Fell skeletons are silent and look away from you, but they do have sympathy for you, having experienced starvation in their youths back when they were weak and had to work for food. They were always sympathetic to the plight of the starved, Red and Noir were the first to warm up to the Horror brothers when they found out about their universe.

Shamefully, your stomach growls and you flush- though you are also confusedly intrigued. How the fuck did your stomach growl when you didn't have a physical stomach? Stars, you definitely have to chalk that up to magic don't you? Great. "haha, well, better get these plates into the dining room huh. i'm sta-uh, hungry. that's what i am. hungry." You stumble over the word 'starving'. You don't want to remind Axe and Crooks over their past, you had no right. 

You pick up the big ass plate of steamy hot food, its scent mocking your nonexistent nostrils and teasing your stomach. You. Will. Not. _Drool._

"WELL YOU BETTER HEAD OFF THEN." Black gruffs without looking at you, stirring something in a big cooking pot- curry? Was that curry? Or gumbo? Shit, you're feeling really hungry now. "SINCE YOU ARE NEW HERE AND I AM FEELING COURTEOUS YOU CAN JUST TAKE THAT ONE PLATE AND THEN WAIT PATIENTLY IN THE DINING ROOM. THESE OTHER PEONS WILL GET THE REST OF THE FOOD." He sniffed.

You blink in surprise, "what. but-" You start to protest, you could totally help with the rest of the food taking. Just look at the amount of food here, even with just them it would definitely take multiple trips to get everything. Axe interrupts you smoothly, "better just go with it chine, you don't want to argue with mr. blackberry there when he says something with that tone and sniff." He says, grinning lazily at you.

You can't help back the amused chuckle as Black splutters and screeches at Axe, aiming a wet ladle at him. "YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH PEASANT! AND DO NOT CALL ME THAT CHILDISH NICKNAME! I AM THE HORRIFYING BLACK! SHOW SOME RESPECT CRETIN!" He exclaims, waving the ladle around like a threatening weapon as his velvet apron swished with his movement. Oh you do respect him. Kind of. Heh.

You, Red and Axe snicker. Noir makes a point of rolling his eyelights while Crooks huffs quietly in what seems to be amusement. "alright then." You concede, though at some point you should totally try and argue with 'Mr. Blackberry'. Stars, this place was great.

You shouldn't be here, but boy was it great here.

At any rate though, you return to the dining room in a good mood. Carrying a big plate of what seemed to be and smelled to be delicious food. Axe was impressively balancing four plates, though you suspect some magic to it. Red was just doing two and Crooks was also carrying a big plate. Noir of course had to out do all of you and was balancing five plates, the fifth one atop his head like a hat- again, you suspect magic because you have no idea how the hell he's able to do that. 

Noir tells you where to set the big plate down, and as you do, you notice that the dining room has gained three additional skeletons in your absence. 

It's Dancet-Hop, Mutt and Green had arrived and was sitting down at the table. Green conversing with with your brother who was also sitting down now a seat over, presumably that seat is reserved for G you think. You see that most pairs of the skeleton brothers are sitting besides each other, with the exception of Green who's 'brother' still hadn't arrived. You wonder when Gaster Sans arrives.

"AH! CHINE! WELCOME BACK!" Pyrus greets from his seat, beaming at you as you set down the plate in the middle lane of the gigantic dining table. "CHINE, THIS IS HOP, MUTT AND GREEN! G HASN'T COME BACK YET, I THINK HE'S GOING TO BE LATE UNFORTUNATELY." He says with a sigh and frown. Oh, alright then. You hope he gets back in time for dinner though, there was a lot of good food. 

"Hello Chine, it's nice to meet you and your brother." Green greets you with a welcoming smile. You mirror the smile, thinking how cool it was that Gaster Papyrus was here. 

Hop salutes you with a wink, "sup, nice digs dude." He compliments, looking over your clothing. You crack a thankful and flattered grin.

"yeah i know, thanks." You look at Mutt and he gives you a faint smirk and a small wave. "sup, you're black's brother huh? your brother's cooking smells nice." You tell him, and the faint smirk grows a bit and he nods back. 

"m'lor- bro's cooking's to die for." He mumbles, and you share a chuckle. 

He's got a free spot on both sides, Hop sitting one seat over. You think Black is going to sit on his right, so you'll go sit by his left. Hopefully he doesn't mind. "you mind if i sit here?" You ask once you get to his left. His his brow... bones? furrow a bit before he shrugs and nods, "thanks man." You're almost sitting across your brother, he pays you no mind, he and Green back talking to each other. Apparently they're talking about the library that's near both their rooms. Good for your brother, he's socializing. 

You wave at Axe as he, Crooks, Red and Noir leave to get the rest of the food. "YOU'RE NOT GOING WITH THEM?" Your brother noticed, addressing you.

You shrug, "i would but black said i should just sit down and wait to chow with the rest of ya." You admit, your brother looks displeased- you feel the same, you want to help out more but, "hey, i'm not gonna say anything otherwise to him. axe told me not to anyway so i'm not." He looks even more displeased but lets it go and you sigh, slumping against the table.

"so chine," Hop starts, leaning to look at you, "how're you settling? you and your brother seem kinda calm, calmer than my bro and i when we first got here." He joked, Tango chuckles behind him. 

You give him a crooked grin, "believe me, i got it all internal. just waitin' for a moment of peaceful loneness before i can let loose my freak out." You joked back... Well, half-joked. You know the moment you're in your new room, you're going to just- malfunction. Break down. 

Nope nope nope _don't think about that._

Compartmentalize it, for later. In the room.

Big deep breath in...

Big deep breath out...

Just get through dinner, talk to your brother alone afterwards, go to the cottage after that, and _then_ freak out in the safety of your new room.

Hey, at least you can freak out on that sweet window bed you have now.

First though, you have to eat dinner.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> basically my new idea involves something like chine and visor, only different and with a big big difference; pokemon  
> there's poketale i know but this is different  
> they're chine and visor but as something _like_ poketale. but they're also in another universe, living like hermits in a 'cursed forest' (they made it 'cursed' ever since they moved into the forest) and this is set in an undertale au where the monster kingdom still exists, it's somewhat in the past so no major technology  
> basically i just want chine and visor (might change their names if i do go through with this) to be pokemon breeders in a new universe and being loved by their pokemon and eventually the incoming other aus


	6. During Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not good with dinner scenes, and honestly i didn't really know what to put for dinner scenes, so this is just a really short chapter about the dinner and the other half of the chapter is just... something  
> important something but still something
> 
> EDIT: also i just realized i forgot to put stretch into the story last chapter  
> fuck  
> uh  
> let's just pretend he was there at the dinner table last chapter until i get around to editing the chapter eventually in the future?

* * *

Meeting Hop, Stretch, Mutt and Green was interesting.

While your brother went to assist Noir and the others in fetching dinner and putting it on the table, the rest of you and the others finished setting up the table with the plates, cutlery and glasses. Just as Pyrus the others were sitting down, all three of them came in.

You were introduced and you decided to sit down one seat over Green after he tells you he was mostly saving a seat for G- you notice that most of the skeletons sat right by their brothers. Not really strange but you know that you and your own brother won't sit side by side. You'll both end up bickering as your brother will probably end up annoying you somehow like nudge your foot insistently without a reason why or poke you underneath the table.

It was typical, though you would admit that you'd probably do the same.

What can you say, you truly were brothers- not to mention you were already used to you both eating across each other instead of besides each other. Even when you weren't at the dining table, you'd both either be at the very end of the couch or you or your brother would end up on a different chair. 

As you and the others wait, Green was recommending you books to read now that you slept in the other room that was near the library. You were definitely intrigued, you'll read them when you can- after settling into the mansion and this new life...

Your smile becomes a bit more fixed and stiff as you remember, this was your life now. You have no idea what was going to happen to you and your brother, could you even return to your old bodies? What happened to the real Prosthesis Papyrus and Sans? Did you take over their bodies? Their souls? 

...

_Oh look your brothers back with food._

"AH! CHINE! WELCOME BACK!" Pyrus greets from his seat, beaming at your brother as he sets down the plate in the middle lane of the gigantic dining table. "CHINE, THIS IS HOP, MUTT AND GREEN! G HASN'T COME BACK YET, I THINK HE'S GOING TO BE LATE UNFORTUNATELY." He says with a sigh and frown after introducing the other skeletons to your brother. You wonder if G would come in time for dinner.

From a seat over, Green smiles and greets your brother. "Hello Chine, it's nice to meet you and your brother." Chine mirrors his smile, looking at G as a whole- yes, Gaster Papyrus was very cool indeed. He wore a light green turtleneck sweater and hung on the back of his chair was his usual black coat, his hands were on the table so you could see the holes on his hands. You're glad that you and your brother opted out on that design for Prosthesis AU- you're already touchy of giant hole on your face, having holes on your hands would freak you out even more. _~~You're already made of bones which have gaps and natural holes already why are you complaining.~~_

Hop salutes at your brother with a wink, he's wearing a simple dark blue hoodie though his hood was down, his hands were somewhat covered with fingerless gloves. "sup, nice digs dude." He compliments, looking over your brother's clothing. Your brother cracks a thankful and flattered grin. You roll your eyes, though you're also a bit flattered yourself- you're the one who mostly gave the designs for the skeleton brothers. Out of the both of you, you had a better fashion sense than your brother.

"yeah i know, thanks." Chine looks at Mutt and he gives him a faint smirk and a small wave. "sup, you're black's brother huh? your brother's cooking smells nice." He tells him, and the faint smirk grows a bit and the darker Papyrus nods back. 

"m'lor- bro's cooking's to die for." He mumbles, he shares a chuckle with your brother. You're back to talking with Green, returning to your subject of the library and book recommendations. You can't exactly recommend any books back, not until you think more on it and see what's alright or not.

Chine glances between Mutt and Hop, seeing the free seats, he looks contemplative before moving over to Mutt. "you mind if i sit here?" He asks once he get to Mutt's left. Mutt thinks it over before nodding, Chine thanks him and sits down. Chine's almost sitting across you, you pay him no mind as you continue to chat with Green. 

However, you notice him waving at Axe, Crooks, Red and Noir leaving presumably to get the rest of the food, however your brother stays sitting down. 

"YOU'RE NOT GOING WITH THEM?" You question, addressing him with a frown.

He shrugs, "i would but black said i should just sit down and wait to chow with the rest of ya." He admits, you're not too pleased. Though you're guests in this mansion _~~new world~~_ you should still help out nonetheless. It was the least you both could do for getting essentially free housing and food. You'd think Chine would feel the same, however... "hey, i'm not gonna say anything otherwise to him. axe told me not to anyway so i'm not." You're even more displeased but if Axe truly insisted you can't do anything about it. You let it go.

Chine sighs, slumping against the table as you turn back to prompt Green to continue his talk, he looks between you and your brother and you give him a reassuring smile. "YOU WERE SAYING? I ADMIT, I'M CURIOUS BETWEEN THE DIFFERENCES IN LITERATURE BETWEEN WORLDS, HAVE YOU FOUND ANYTHING DIFFERENT SO FAR?" You prompt him. Green hesitates before continuing on.

From the corner of your vision however, you see your brother, looking very tired but giving Hop a crooked grin and joke back at Hop. Good, at least he was alright enough to socialize with others. You frown at his words though, "believe me, i got it all internal. just waitin' for a moment of peaceful loneness before i can let loose my freak out."

He was speaking the truth, for the both of you.

All you want to do is be alone and let loose.

Or preferably be alone with your brother so you can finally drop everything.

But not now.

Dinner came first.

You watch your brother's eyelights disappear for a moment, a frozen look on his face- he's compartmentalizing. Shoving all his problems into a small place in his head, he'll check it out later on when either you, he or both of you were _~~safe~~_ alone. That was one of the things you truly admired your brother for, and at the same time loathed because sometimes his compartmentalizing could become... _unhealthy_. 

It was a more handy and useful version of bottling things up for later on.

But then again you were doing that yourself, compartmentalizing- you're not as good as your brother, but you can distract yourself just fine.

Like now.

Your brother seemed to handle himself, and you have an interesting skeleton right before you. Green was a good anchor, talking calmly but also emphatically in a way. His voice was also soothing, not too loud nor too soft- though he was still certainly louder than the average person, just a tad bit. A difference to the tone of voice to the other skeletons- now including yourself. 

"Are you alright Visor?" Green asks you, a concerned frown on his face. 

You seemed to have spaced out, damn. "I'M FINE GREEN, SIMPLY TIRED AND HUNGRY IS ALL." You reply, giving him a reassuring smile- you also aim it at the others, especially at Tango, Bones and Blue. Thankfully or possibly not, your stomach seems to have great timing as it audibly growls, making you fluster at how loud it was. Your brother doesn't help when he gives you an amused smirk, "DON'T YOU LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT CHINE, YOU'RE HUNGRY TOO." You snap at him, his smirk simply grows and you growl.

"IT'S ALRIGHT VISOR! WE'RE QUITE FAMISHED TOO." Pyrus, the dear sweetheart, comforts you from his seat. "IT SHOULDN'T BE TOO LONG, BUT IF YOU'RE REALLY HUNGRY YOU AND CHINE CAN START EATING FIRST IF YOU'D LIKE."

You make a face, "IT'S FINE, WE CAN WAIT A LITTLE LONGER. IT'D BE NICER TO EAT TOGETHER WITH ALL THE FOOD PRESENT." It'd be very rude for you and your brother to start helping yourselves to the lovely food already set down- they do look great and smell just as great but really, it'd be impolite. 

Chine frowns but nods in agreement with you, "yeah, a few minutes isn't going to make a difference pyrus. we're all good." He said, sending him a pair of thumbs up. 

Pyrus nodded back, looking a bit put out but smiles all the same. 

Chatter comes back afterwards, but not for long as Axe and the others come back- this time with Black who carries a gigantic bowl no doubt filled with steaming liquid. It's a good thing that Pyrus instructed to put down a lot of soup bowls. Still, they were all showing impressive balancing skills, either that or there was an implementation of magic. You weren't going to find out because you just might laugh out loud if you find out that yes, they not only used magic in such a dramatic fashion of swishing their fabric in nonexistent wind but also to impressively balance dishes. Which isn't as hilarious but you'd still find it funny as hell.

"yo welcome back." Chine says to them as they set down the rest of the food, Mutt standing up to assist Black much to his clear annoyance but the smaller scarred Sans didn't even reprimand him. Huh, you'd think he would but apparently not. "man this all looks great. compliments to the chefs." He praises, Black, Noir and Pyrus brighten up considerably- though you suspect that Noir and Black would just deny it or boast their skill.

"INDEED, THIS IS QUITE THE FEAST YOU'VE PREPARED." You add in, smiling, "I HAVEN'T SEEN THIS MUCH FOOD IN A LONG WHILE." You can't help but add, looking at the various tasty looking plates around. Your brother gives you a sharp and you frown at him, what did you say wrong? You don't see the complicated looks from certain skeletons. "I SUPPOSE THAT DINNER IS SERVED? OR DO WE HAVE TO WAIT FOR G?" You finally ask, reminding everyone that one skeleton was still missing from their skeletal group. 

They realize that G was indeed, still very late to the dinner. "GREEN?" Pyrus asked aloud, sending his Gaster-fused alternate a questioning look. 

Green himself was already typing into his phone, "It seems that he won't be able to make it back in time for dinner. He says to start without him." He informs him with a disappointed frown, he sighs, "Shame, I believe you'll just have to meet him tomorrow Visor, Chine." He tells you and your brother with an apologetic look. 

You both wave it off, "it's fine." "IT IS FINE GREEN."

"well, guess we're starting dinner now. _bone_ appetite." Stretch punned from Blue's side. Instantly there was complaints and laughter.

"BROTHER I TOLD YOU THAT PUNS ARE PROHIBITED DURING THE DINNER!"  
"but bro, that was before dinner. we're doing dinner now aren't we."  
"THAT IS NOT THE POINT AND NOT TECHNICALLY TRUE!"

Despite the irritation from the pun from the orange-hoodie'd skeleton, you chuckle slightly at the interactions between them both- reading about the brother interactions were one thing, but to experience and watch it in person is rather amusing.

Deep down, you feel a sliver of jealousy at the easy teasing. It's gone without a trace quickly however, you don't have to do that with your own brother. You both care for each other in your own, complicated but unique way and you were just fine with that. 

Though of course, what you were both fine with wasn't actually considered fine by others.

* * *

At the first unofficial 'Welcoming Feast', things had been so tense and strained that the air could have been almost thick enough to slice from the air. 

Admittedly Pyrus and Blue's cooking had been less than edible than before, but due to their brother's natures they hadn't exactly known. Until Noir and Crooks brought it into light, it hurt their feelings and almost prompted into an argument due to their brothers' interference but both Classic and Stretch had been cowed effectively by their embarrassed brothers who felt hurt that their brothers couldn't found it to tell the truth to them about their own cooking- oh it had been nice on paper but they didn't exactly feel that great in finding out that their brothers pretended to enjoy their cooking despite the fact it was so bad that when they weren't looking they threw the rest of it into the void. 

It was also a starting point of change between the relationships of the two pairs of brothers. Blue and Pyrus just starting on realizing just how coddled they were by their older brothers, with Blue even more so coddled as he found that Classic at least made some good attempts to be honest with Pyrus and Pyrus knew more than him in some things. Stretch on the other hand? Always treated him as his little brother, which wasn't that bad but there was big emphasis on _little._ Blue was a full grown skeleton now, and his brother still genuinely treated him as his baby boned brother! 

The realization hit him when Stretch had been upset when Blue told him the gritty details of human wars. Stretch had tried to fight with Noir and Red since they were the ones who told Blue in the first place, uncensored with hard, harsh truth. Blue had never felt so mortified. 

During this time, Red and Noir were struggling to adapt to their new surroundings. To their semi-peaceful surroundings, where their word of law, the law of ' ** _kill or be killed_** ' didn't matter. The control they had in their lives was gone and they were thrown into a new environment, and despite how 'soft' and 'weak' it was, they'd been high strung and ready to fight at a moment's notice. Not to mention the slight deterioration of their relationship because of the stress. 

Axe and Crooks had kept to themselves, trying hard and successfully keeping out of most of the drama- unless it food was involved. The skeletons were quick to learn not to waste food in front of them, Red and Noir had even labelled them 'potential allies' to hide their sympathy at the fact that the two had been starving in their universe and were territorial over their food to the point of hostility and violence. The other skeletons were horrified and sympathetic but they didn't really get it the same way the rougher skeletons did, and even then it wasn't the same but at least they _got_ it. And ironically, their relationship had lasted strongly, never wavering, never deteriorating, both monstrous-looking skeleton monsters trusted each other wholly without fail and had no barriers between them. 

Of course then the drama started when it was revealed that the two bigger skeletons had eaten humans before.

Repulsed, disgusted and horrified, Axe and Crooks had been shunned and _almost_ thrown out...

Until Axe broke down in front of them and screamed his emotions at them. Slapping their faces with the dark unfortunate truth, punching them with the harsh reality that when someone was starving, _anything edible_ was _food_. Human meat was nothing different. Crooks even pointed out quietly on how some humans let themselves be eaten by their comrades should the emergency be dire enough, and that despite the fact he and his brother ate humans, they didn't find joy in it. 

One had to do what they could to survive.

Something that Noir and Red sympathized and understood greatly and were the first ones to make amends. The others lagging behind, Sans and Stretch lagging even further behind their kinder brothers.

But in the end, it all cooled down. It wasn't a smooth path, but it was enough that they took steps in understanding each other and keeping a more open mind out. Classic and Pyrus understanding their alternates and strengthening their relationship, Blue and Stretch carefully and slowly building up their relationship as brother with each other and their alternates, Red and Noir steadily adapting and getting used to the lack of true violence in their lives and steadily having a healthier brotherhood, Axe and Crooks no longer viewed as true monsters and connecting with their alternates.

The tension slowly draining in terms of drama and such and the tentative talk of possibly moving to a bigger place for them all and somewhere more secluded since Red and Noir weren't too keen on humans even if they sought out to ignore most of them- Axe and Crooks on the other hand had to resist staring at the various humans, it didn't really help that almost all humans stared back at them with clear fear.

It had been set clear that the two of them weren't going back to their human-eating ways, they were more than glad enough for that as long as they were kept a steady consumption of other foods. 

And then the machine that the older and machine-savvy brothers worked on exploded and brought in more skeletons into the mix. Black, Mutt, Tango and Hop.

The house with eight skeletons had already been cramped, but with _twelve_ skeletons?

It was very luck that monster gold had been converted into great amounts of human currency and that Classic and Pyrus were close friends to the Dreemurr family, of course at first they tried to refuse the offered expenses but no one argued back with Toriel. No one. Or at least, the skeletons were weak against the motherly goat monster's sternness. 

Asgore had pulled a few strings and had managed to quickly buy them their new home, it had been more than enough thankfully. 

And yes, Classic and Pyrus' close friends all knew of the situation. It would've been hard to hide, and they needed Alphys' help to make identification papers for each new skeleton with the added help of Asgore and Toriel as King and Queen of Monsters to make things official with no questions asked. No else knew. 

There had been a few tense moments with Red, Noir, Axe, Crooks and surprisingly Stretch for reasons that had eventually been explained. Red and Noir were rather obvious, they weren't used to the kinder versions of the cruel monsters they knew- though Red was more at ease with Toriel since she was the alternate of his punning buddy from beyond the Ruin Doors. Undyne was appalled to the alternate versions of herself, _especially_ Axe and Crooks' version of her. She made the effort in giving them both space, trying not to feel offended whenever Axe snapped at her or when Crooks tensed at the sight of her. It mellowed out thankfully as she won them over bit by bit. 

Stretch on the other hand... Well, he wasn't necessarily on good terms with Frisk. Not really at first, it made sense since everything in his universe things were swapped. But he slowly got over it with the help of his brother.

The second unofficial 'Welcoming Feast' was less tense and definitely a bit more enjoyable. Pyrus and Blue had worked hard on their own cooking skills, with Noir 'reluctantly' assisting them- Crooks on the other hand was more than happy to help. By then, they managed to make plenty good food for their newest guests and residents. Though the fact that Black and Mutt had a rather familiar unhealthy relationship that resembled Noir and Red's before they settled made things a bit tense, the fact it was kind of worse didn't help. 

Tango also went through a brief period of being hurt when he too, was revealed to be not as good at cooking as he had previously thought. But it was less dramatic and thankfully he joined Pyrus and Blue for cooking lessons. Black took more than a while to come around, eventually ending up like Noir and slowly mending his relationship with Mutt. They were their own unique flavor of brothers but at least they still cared. 

When the machine malfunctioned for a third time and brought in four more skeletons, Green, G, Bones and Skull- well, the Welcoming Feast was officially declared official and traditional at this point. By then, things were settling smoother. Of course there'd been bumps when the others found out about Axe and Crooks but that had been swiftly dealt with. 

This would be the Fourth Welcoming Feast, welcoming Chine and Visor into their household for however long it would take to actually fix the damn machine that _kept. Fucking. Malfunctioning!_ But hey, this time, there'd only been one pair of brothers. That had to mean something right? That they were on the right track on fixing it and making it work the way it was supposed to? Right?

Right.

But in the meanwhile... They had a new pair of brothers to welcome and integrate into their weird ever growing fraternity of skeletons. 

And so far, they seemed fine. 

However they slowly finding out they weren't. Blue, Pyrus, Red, Classic, Skull, already knew that they were both from a war universe; Red, Noir, Black, Axe and Crooks, knew that at some point they were starving and were currently living on rations and take out; Tango, Bones, Blue, Red and Axe knew of the hole that was behind Visor's visor; Axe was the only one to suspect Chine's spine so far; but all of them were getting the feeling that the relationship between Chine and Visor wasn't exactly... _stable._

Throughout the feast both Chine and Visor made both subtle and not-so-subtle jabs at each other, and it was difficult to decipher whether or not they were serious jabs, things they genuinely meant. And they could see the growing tiredness that came from both skeletons, they could recognize a lot of things during the feast, maybe they were all projecting a bit on the two of them- it was easy to do, seeing as they were each other's alternates but the concern for the newest pair of brothers spiked during the meal.

If there was one thing that group of skeletons had learned over their stay in the mansion, it was slowly repairing family relationships between brothers. At this point it was somewhat like second nature to help each other now, and with Chine and Visor being new residents in the mansion/cottage, of course they were going to help them.

No matter what.

* * *

The food was good, great even.

It shouldn't be a surprise, Black seemed to have been the one behind the cooking alongside Noir with Pyrus assisting him. And later on you and your brother would learn that ones who couldn't cook were being taught by the more culinary inclined skeletons, which was great news. Hopefully less chance of food poisoning, you weren't optimistic enough to say you wouldn't ever experience food poisoning... again. 

That aside, the dinner had been great. Unfortunately G still hadn't shown up but that was fine. You got to talk with everyone else, though you mostly talked with Black, Mutt, Axe and Crooks since they were the ones who were closest to you, with Black and Axe right beside you as you ate. Which by the way, eating as a skeleton? One of the weirdest experiences you've ever had in your life, half because it felt both natural and not.

You'd finally noticed your ectoplasmic magical tongue, which was the same shade of blue as your eyes- if a bit bright because it was glowing slightly but still. It really felt normal to eat; stab food, shove into mouth, chew, swallow, rinse and repeat. 

It felt so normal, it felt abnormal if that made sense. You managed to distract and compartmentalize it all enough to eat your share, but you feel that the sensation of food going down your throat felt a bit much because _where the fuck did the food go?_

You eventually end up finishing a bit earlier than others, your brother as well since he probably felt the same. The others notice because of course they were, everyone was strangely... social? You didn't know what you were expecting, but you felt like it would've made more sense if they were more guarded against you both, but they were entirely accepting and supportive- Axe and Crooks trying to get you to eat a few more bites, Green coaxing your brother to at least finish one part of his plate.

Helpless to do anything else, you both did it, even if it felt a bit too much. You felt entirely too full and yet empty, the flavor in your mouth was almost overwhelming as well as the scent. 

Magic was such bullshit, it was amazing amazing bullshit but bullshit was bullshit and you were nearing the end of your rope here. 

The unsettling numbness was settling in your bones, which was pretty much literal now since you were nothing but bones- well, bones and _metal_. 

Fuck, you were starting to split at the seams, you were steadily fraying and you needed to be alone or be with your brother.

But thankfully, you manage to last through the Welcoming Feast, composed and casual- or so you thought. Axe and Black noticed the little tidbits of pent up stress from you as the dinner went on, you'd keep shifting in your seat every now and then, your eyelights would shift to and fro, glancing at your brother, then at the windows, the doorways- every possible exit. Axe would have compared you to a cautious animal, unsure whether to stay or escape. 

But you didn't know that.

By the end of the dinner, you're sitting back against your chair tiredly, stomach feeling complicated and thoughts starting to jumble together. It was all pleasant, it really was but the underlying panic that had been steadily building up from the moment you ended up in this world, in this _body_ \- it was starting to get to you. You start to zone out, looking up at the nice ceiling the big dining room, it was nice but it was also kind of boring...

You needed out.

You needed safety.

You needed privacy.

You needed-

_PAP_

"what the-" You yelp, startled as a firm palm collides against your skull in a firm but thankfully painless slap. "wha- bro what was that fo-o-o- _oor?!_ " You're suddenly lifted from your seat, Visor's hand clasping the back of your damn coat. Your first thought is that this was how kittens felt like when they were being held up by the nape, which was a very weird thing to think and you were never going to think about it ever again. 

It was so fucking unfair to know that your brother was now even stronger as he held you up in the air with only one hand, you don't bother flailing or escaping, looking only very annoyed as Visor gives you a deadpanned look, digital eyes halved to properly emote on how deadpanned your brother is. But you see it, see how unusually high strung your is. He's at the end of his rope already. At the very end.

He wants to go, no, he _needs_ to go, he's out and he's taking you with him. You will let him, you just would've like it if you weren't being held in the air like a damned kitten in the maws of its parent- _shit_ , you weren't going to think about that again! Your face colors against your will after you look to the side and see Axe and Crooks looking at you and your brother with wide concerned eyes, oh great, everyone was seeing this. 

Thanks bro, you're just _great._

"BLACK, NOIR, PYRUS, THAT WAS A LOVELY FEAST AND I MUST THANK YOU FOR THE FOOD ON BEHALF ON MY BROTHER AND I." Your brother loudly announces, the named skeletons gave him varying looks of gratitude and pride with a side of concern, obviously Pyrus' concern was more readable as Black and Noir were too tsundere to actually let something like 'concern' on their face. "BUT I BELIEVE IT'S TIME I TURN IN FOR THE NIGHT. I WILL BE SLEEPING SHORTLY." He says, already taking a couple of steps towards the nearest exit that lead back to the stairs. 

Tango stops him, "WAIT! WE STILL HAVE TO GIVE YOU SOME SPARE CLOTHING TO SLEEP IN!" He points out, ah right that. 

"yeah, blue and red gotta give chine some too." Axe reminded, giving you an unreadable look as you continue to hang by the coat. And man, are you glad this coat is sturdy. But your armpits were starting to suffer, you'd like to be back on the ground please. "you're coming back with my bro and i to the cottage right?" Why was your brother taking you with him if he was heading in for the night? You both were adamant to sleep apart after all, did you brother change his mind? Those types of questions were probably in his head.

You give him and his brother an amiable smile, "yup. not gonna give up that window bed room whatsoever. gotta help my bro first though, visor maintenance." You tell him, which is a bit of a lie, or maybe not. You do want to check on his visor before he sleeps, so it still counted as maintenance right?

At the mention of that though, Blue, Tango, Bones, Axe and Red tensed, "need any help with that?" Red actually asks much to your surprise. 

"I- YES, WOULD YOU LIKE SOME HELP CHINE? I AM VERY EFFICIENT WITH HEALING MAGIC IF YOU NEED ANY ASSISTANCE!" Tango exclaimed, Bones echoing his exclamation, both looking very concerned for your brother who's visor had gone blank. 

That was nice, he already had some friends so concerned for him. Unfortunately their healing magic wouldn't really help your brother, not really but maybe somehow you could do something about that? It was a crazy fucking though considering that you have no idea on how to do that but, you had Prosthesis Sans' skills right? Was it wishful thinking you could do something to help your brother even more?

"IT'S FINE TANGO, BONES. ALL I NEED IS MY BROTHER TO LOOK AT MY VISOR AND NOTHING, NOR ANYONE ELSE." Visor tells them both, making them wilt. You weren't the one to shoot down their offers and _you_ were feeling guilty, damn. Papyrus' face was just perfect in inciting guilt really. "AND THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR THE CLOTHING, YOU MAY DROP IT OFF IN MY ROOM. WHERE I WILL NOW GO WITH MY BROTHER SO HE CAN CHECK ON MY VISOR... AND SO THE BOTH OF US CAN HAVE SOME PRIVACY AND SPEAK OF OUR UNFORTUNATE SITUATION. PLEASE RESPECT THAT." 

There it is. The understanding and surprisingly reluctant nods of agreement.

You and your brother needed to talk, you didn't need worried skeletons on your heels for this.

You sigh and close your eyes, feeling your brother briskly walk out of the dining room, the voices of the other skeletons muffling and growing faint as your brother makes his way towards his new room, still carrying you with on hand- he was draping you against his back for fuck's sake like a coat! But then again he was holding on to your coat so, ugh.

You don't say anything though, you feel tired, drained and also relieved to be outside the sights of the other skeletons. 

You didn't have to act fine now, you weren't safe yet, still climbing the stairs, but you were outside the views of the Multiversal entourage of Sans and Papyruses. 

At the sound of the door opening, you open your eyes and more relief floods your inside as your brother steps into his new room. It's neat, tidy, but painfully lacking in actual personality. Your brother was going to have to build from the ground up to make this room truly his, which is another issue on its own. 

An issue you can now deal with as your brother closes the door behind him, locking it shut and setting you down on your feet.

You can talk now to each other with no problem. You were free to breakdown now. 

You felt exhausted though. 

Near the end of the rope, that was where you were. You could breakdown now but...

Arms wrap themselves around you, your brother's taller form shrinking against you as he gasps for needed breath. He's shaking, and the hands on your back are clawing so tightly you can actually feel them through the leather of your coat. "Brother-" He wheezes, trying to drag you down with him as he tries to collapses on both you and the floor. You anchor him, pulling him your direction and falling on your ass, you grunt when you collide on the fortunately carpeted floor. It cushions your fall a bit, but you're more focused on your brother, wrapping your own hands around his trembling shoulders.

This was too familiar for you.

_ Small. Your brother was so small, but so are you. That didn't matter as your brother trembled in your grip, you try to keep him quiet. Muffle his crying- you can't wake the other children, your other 'siblings'. It was so late tonight, you'd both be in so much trouble, your brother especially. You're at the corner of the room, trying to blend into the shadows. "It's okay bro bro." You whisper, rubbing his back. "Big brother's right here..." _

"it's okay bro bro." You whisper, rubbing his back, "big brother's right here..." 

You can breakdown right now, right at this instance with your brother.

But your brother came first. For as shitty as you both treated each other in the public eye- you would never do anything else but comfort him when it was just the two of you and he was in need of it.

You don't remember your name, either of your names, but that didn't matter because you're your little brother's only big brother and he always came first.

Always.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> admittedly this was a bit rushed because i wanted to updated a bit earlier than usual  
> and because my attention was halved because i decided to just go with the idea i had before  
> the pokemon idea  
> don't worry though it's not implemented into this story  
> it is now a separate story
> 
> Monsters In The Forest
> 
> i've linked both stories together as 'inspired by' and 'inspired/related works' to make it easier to know that this is legitimate btw both this story and that story were created by me  
> let me know how you think of this chapter and then hop on over to Monsters In The Forest and let me know what you think of that
> 
> hope you enjoyed, till later


	7. After Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i told you these two idiots actually do care for each other.  
> you didn't doubt me but yeah, they do care for each other, they're just fucking idiots who can't publicly show affection for reasons yet to be known.
> 
> you'll know why in future chapters, but for now, have some brotherly affection and angst.

* * *

Stretch watched the two newest brothers leave, with one brother being held up by the back of his coat and the other holding said coat and draping their brother over their shoulder. Chine looked exasperated and _bone tired_ _ ~~heh~~_ , letting himself get lifted despite his obvious embarrassment over the situation. Visor resolutely didn't look back as he left, taking Chine with him. 

The orange hoodied skeleton didn't exactly know how to define those two brothers. As far as he could tell, individually they were good monsters- Chine was actively talking with Axe and Crooks, undisturbed by their presence and being social with everyone that talked to him. Visor didn't seem bothered by the two more intimidating monsters at all either. They were nice skeletons, they didn't start conversations though, letting the others talk to them first and their responses varied from long ones to short but meaningful.

Chine at least appreciated the single pun Stretch made before dinner started. 

Individually, they were fine to Stretch's first impressions. Together on the other hand? 

They were more than a bit worrying. They hardly talked to each other during dinner, and when they did it was barbed with insults- subtle or not, mostly not. Stretch had been surprised the first time Visor had insulted Chine back with a curse, he hadn't expected that, he seemed to be like Tango, Bones, Crooks, Pyrus and his own brother; disliking curses or replacing them to be more 'kid-friendly'. Or maybe like Noir and Black, rarely using swears. 

Visor just flat out swore, cursing his brother's existence with an undecipherable tone that could either be taken seriously or not. Stretch honestly couldn't tell, and neither could the others. 

Chine didn't take the insults lying down, oh no, he shot right _back_ in the same tone, insults barbed with verbal wire. The protective brotherly side within Stretch prickled but he was ultimately confused on how the two's relationship worked. It really seemed like they disliked each other, but that couldn't be it. Stretch could see the little moments of _something_ during the dinner, the way Chine's eyelights would occasionally stray to Visor's figure then back around the room after a beat or two, the way Visor's body would sometime shift to face Chine even if his digital eyes were somewhere else, Chine's strained and tired movement, Visor's occasional flat tone of voice. Both of them were having some trouble with eating, unused to the amount of food in front of them. Stretch took in a deep breath as understanding colored his thoughts when Axe, Crooks and even _Green_ , coaxing Chine and Visor to eat a bit more from their plate. 

Well shit, were they having food problems in their universe too? They were going to have do something about that. 

As the dinner progressed, Stretch observed them slowly, subtly deteriorate in their seats. 

They were tense, stressed and uncomfortable.

Obviously this had to do with the fact they were now in another universe, probably vastly different from their original one with the one ticket back home currently malfunctioning. _Again_. Stretch is beginning to feel doubt on ever coming back home but he's still going to try nonetheless. He and Blue enjoyed their time here, they really did but they still had friends back in their Underground who were still trapped there in their mountain.

They had to get the machine working again, and with the function to _keep_ working- travel between universes was something they were all vying and hoping to achieve and they were so close. Even with all the mishaps on the way. 

Back to the newest residents of their slowly growing ossein household; they were tense and ready to snap. They'd need privacy, something synonymous to safety, someplace to talk things out- he and Blue had been somewhat the same, though Blue had been less affected being the more optimistic brother out of them both while Stretch himself had been just like Chine. So exhausted to the point of just accepting it.

Or well, that's how he interpreted Chine's clear exhaustion when dinner ended. The shorter skeleton immediately slouched in his chair, his dim blue eyelights _~~fuck he reminded him so much of Blue with those colored eyelights of his~~_ disappearing as he stared at the ceiling, zoning out to the point that he couldn't hear the concerned words of the skeletons around him. 

Pyrus and Blue were immediately concerned, softly calling out to Chine who didn't respond. Axe looked unsure and was about to lay a concerned hand on him when Visor suddenly stood up, briskly walking the shortest way towards his brother, he waved off the concerned claims of his fellow skeletons, giving them a strained but reassuring smile before he stood behind his brother's chair.

Stretch watched closely, as Visor slapped the top of Chine's skull, breaking him out of his thoughts abruptly. The slap looked painless thankfully, but his brother still winced nonetheless. 

The older skeleton was starting to get the dreaded feeling that their relationship was as complicated as the more rough skeleton's relationships before they got better. His dread was later confirmed by Blue and the others; the fact that they slept apart had a foreshadowing of how bad it actually was. 

Visor's hold on Chine was actually hilarious at first glance, the way he grabbed the back of Chine's coat reminded Stretch of an mammal animal grabbing the nape of their child for some odd reason- like a mama cat and their kitten. And wasn't that a thought?

But the hilarity is dampened a bit by the way Chine looked. Resigned, exhausted, just _done_ with life itself- it reminded Stretch of himself at his lowest. When depression and the pointlessness of it all was so much that he just wanted to stay in one place and not move for the rest of his life, wait for the time he'd just disappear into dust... Those moments didn't happen as often now a days, but they still happened. And not only to him. It happened to almost everyone in the household, the alternates with his general personality especially. 

Visor leaves with Chine draped over his back, still held by the coat, the subtle words of, 'LEAVE MY BROTHER AND I ALONE FOR A WHILE PLEASE' was there after his words right before he left, Chine closing his eyes and sighing as he was dragged to leave with him. 

Stretch craned his neck a bit, looking over the others, "so... anyone know what's with them yet?" He couldn't help but ask, wondering if they had a clue about them yet. They surely would've asked questions while Stretch and the others weren't around at first.

Inevitably he almost regrets asking as he learns more about the two's situation.

A fucking **_war universe._**

A different level of violence, fucking **_LOVE_** all in all. 

They were from a universe where violence was not only normal, but also probably _required-_ it was a necessity instead of a last resort. It was a different flavor of _kill_ or _be killed_ \- he could see Mutt, Black, Noir and Red converse quietly with each other as they no doubt realized that as well. And then came to the admitted suspicions and partial confirmation on the fact that Chine and Visor had experienced starving before, living off rations and take out- Now Stretch found Axe and Crooks okay skeletons now, no longer wary about them, but the faces they pulled when they shared that to the rest of the skeleton class was _really_ disturbing. 

But he could understand why, they always related and sympathized with those who struggled to gain food in dire circumstances and really with the fact their universe had _war_ \- it shouldn't be that surprising...

He could only imagine their LVs... Or maybe they didn't have that high of LVs, maybe they weren't _directly_ part of the war, at least not enough to have a large amount of LOVE to their SOULs- unlikely but it was still possible right? So he asked if anyone had the chance to CHECK them.

He didn't like the looks that came on the faces of his brother, Red, Axe, Tango and Bones. 

"We Had The Unfortunate Opportunity To Check Visor." Tango exclaimed softly, squirming uncomfortably in his seat with a frown on his face, "I- He's..." 

He _really_ didn't like the way he trailed off...

"what the **_fuck_**." Is what escapes his mouth, softly but with feeling, when he learns of the fact that Visor had a fucking _hole_ in his face. The 'visor check' thing made a lot more sense now. Looking at the picture that _his brother_ took and had sent to Red, he could only feel a sense of terrified concern. Red had forwarded to their entire group chat to show everyone else the horrid hole.

Crooks glanced between the picture to Axe who gave him a grim look in return, no doubt wondering like the rest of them on what the fresh fucking hell happened to Visor's face. Axe had gotten his head hole because of his universe's Undyne, they could only wonder on what happened with Visor. No doubt it was something equally horrifying if not more so. 

But they wouldn't ask, not yet. It would be fucked up to ask outright so soon- they'd learn that with Axe, he had been so cagey and moody about it the first time someone _~~Red~~_ had asked about his head. It took a while but he eventually told them about it. Stretch almost couldn't look at Undyne, _any_ Undyne but mostly Classic's Undyne, the same way ever again, almost.

His Undyne would never do something as horrible like that. Classic's Undyne clearly thought the same way with how careful she was with Axe and Crooks.

And that was the _hole,_ Visor's _stats_ were a **_whole_ _other_ _problem._**

Visor's HP was half what it was usually supposed to be. Or it's _supposed_ to be. His Defense was half itself, while his Attack was thirty- his _LV,_ he was close to Noir and Black, 

Tango imploringly looked at his brother and the rest of the smarter skeletons, "I Don't Suppose You Know What It Means To Have Point Five Slash Three Hundred Forty HP?" He asked, concerned for the newest skeleton and he should be. Stretch has never heard of something like that before, he glanced to the others, neither had they, not even _Green_ knew about it.

"sorry paps, we've got no idea on what that could be." Hop replied with a regretful look, he hated to see the disappointment on Tango's face and honestly Stretch felt the same as he sees Blue's face fall as well. "we'll just have to ask them when we can." Whenever that may be.

"what about chine, anyone manage to check him?" Skull questioned, looking around and was met with negative shakes of heads. His lips pursed and he sighed, "we'll have to do that eventually. preferably with their knowledge- stars know they're going to be pissed when they find out you check'd visor without his knowledge." He says making them collectively wince. Tango and Bones looked guilty of that.

CHECKing someone without their permission outside of an Encounter wasn't uncommon, but it was considered more polite to ask to CHECK someone before doing it. Stretch and Classic had experienced that when they had CHECKed Black and Red, finding out that their LVs were too high by their standards, Axe and Crooks too but they hadn't exactly cared. Not until the humans thing.

"WE'LL TELL THEM TOMORROW AND APOLOGIZE APPROPRIATELY!" Bones decided, giving Tango a look of assurance. Tango gave him a weak smile in turn, "AND THEN WE'LL ASK TO CHECK CHINE IN MAYBE A FEW DAYS?" He suggested to them.

"sounds good to me." "VERY WELL, IT WOULD BENEFIT US ALL IN KNOWING WHAT THEIR STATS ARE." "good idea bro." Came the shared agreements. 

Classic stood up, "anything else that we know or maybe even suspect?" Stretch glanced around and sees Axe with a hesitant look on his face. He caught the skeleton's gaze and rose a bony brow, Axe frowned and then shrugged. Axe probably had a few theories or something but he wouldn't share unless he was more sure on said theories, and even then Stretch was pretty sure that Axe wouldn't share them with _him_ first of all monsters... which was fair enough, he _had_ voted for him and his brother to be kicked out before.

Fuck that had been such a damn mess.

Stretch sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, "guess not... but hey, the food was _de **dish** ous_." He punned, attempting to raise the somber air around the dinner table and remind them all that they had dishes to take care of. Attempt successful as his brother and half of the skeletons groaned in annoyance while the other half chuckled.

"oh _de **fin** itely._" Classic joined in, motioning to the leftover fin from a fish on his plate. 

Skull raised a soup bowl, " _ab **soup** lutely_."

Hop lounged in his chair, "props to the chef, nothing to _com **plate**_ about it." 

" _no **fin**_ at all." Red agreed with a shit-eating grin, "but we _gouda_ do the dishes." 

The groans and shrieks that came after that amazing line of puns was _glorious_. It was a shame that Chine wasn't able to add his two cents, but that was fine.

Hopefully he and his brother were alright, talking to each other civilly and that the visor maintenance was doing alright.

* * *

Your brother is clawing at your back, hard enough that you can feel it through the leather of both your coat and the harness underneath. Desperate gasps escape his mouth as he trembles, he's burning with panic, fueled by the pent up stress that'd been accumulating underneath his calm- you both hadn't been around for that long, probably for a few hours at best but that was more than enough time to cause your brother's panic attack. 

You yourself was silently offering him comfort, arms loosely wrapping around his shoulders, patting his back and keeping him anchored to the ground, to reality. You only speak when it seems like he was gasping too deeply, too frequently, like he wasn't getting any actual air despite his efforts. "breathe brother." You'd say his name, his actual name but you don't remember it. Neither does he, so brother it is. "follow my breathing, feel- feel me breathe." 

You steadily but exaggeratedly inhale, then exhale, you repeat against your brother, pressing yourself against him with your face propped on his shoulder so he could feel you breathing and copy it. 

You both don't think on how your chest was moving somehow despite the fact there was no skin underneath the cloth. No skin, just bones. Metal bones.

Don't think.

Just breathe.

The breathing helps you as well, despite you not being as panicked as he was- you were near that though. Near the end of the rope, but you were holding on just for your brother. He came first. Always came first.

Your brother struggles a bit, to copy your breathing, but you keep doing it, quietly encouraging him as he does. "come on. you can do it. there we go. that's it. just like that brother, breathe with me. keep breathing. you're doing fine." Give him something to audibly focus on instead of the silence of the room and his own unsteady gasps.

Eventually, his breathing is no longer desperate, labored and heavy now but he's not gasping for breath anymore. 

You don't look at him, don't say anything else while rubbing his back. "good?"

"Good." He confirms quietly, voice shaky and rasping but he's good. That's- good. Great really. "What About You?" Are you good? Do you need anything? 

You give him a shrug, "good enough." You answer, you feel good enough. You're still near the end of the rope but you're a few notches higher now. Edging away from it. "i'm good. certainly better than you." You get a faint weak smack on the arm for that, making you smirk. Your brother's back, not completely, but he's better now that the panic's mostly gone now. 

You didn't really realize that your brother was crying, you should have actually expected it because he was having a panic attack but it still surprises you when your brother pulls away a bit to reveal streams of liquid streaming down his face. It's a bit weird, his digital eyes have little droplets on the side to truly emote his feelings and you'd laugh at him for that but the sight of the tear tracks underneath the visor stops you from doing that. 

Briefly you wonder on how that could happen, like actually happen because- no, don't think about that now. You'll end up lowering yourself more to the end of the rope, you tell yourself with a frown. "you look stupid, crying like that." You tell him instead since you wouldn't laugh. 

He scoffs and rolls his fake eyelights, "AND YOU'RE BEING STUPID YOURSELF, STILL COMPARTMENTALIZING LIKE THAT. YOU REALLY WON'T BREAK DOWN RIGHT NOW WILL YOU?" He sneers and you shrug at him again with a weak smirk. You didn't feel like breaking down anymore. The breathing helped, but you won't comment on the compartmentalizing because that was the truth and you both know it.

"i said i felt good enough." 

_Smack_

His palm meets your face, hello palm. It doesn't hurt that much, he could've done worse, "I THINK YOUR REPRESSION HAS GOTTEN WORSE NOW THAT YOU'RE SANS." He tells you while ignoring your whined 'ow', you bat his hand away from your face and take in a steady breath. 

"probably yeah same for you." You agree, stars do you feel tired. "and your tendency for physical violence got worse too." 

_Smack!_

The smack on skull just confirms it, but you notice that it doesn't really hurt. You smile slightly, "just provin' my point bro." 

Your brother wipes away the tear tracks with the palm of his hands and sleeves. He shifts so he's no longer on his knees crumpled against you, now he's sitting on the ground like you, unfairly long legs crossed and palms up on his lap. He's looking down at them and there's a look you can't exactly describe on his face, a mixture of things- uncertainty, fear, shame, guilt, anger, sadness... 

"What Do We Do Brother?" He asks in a whisper as you adjust yourself since you're no longer supporting or anchoring him. "I- We're In These Bodies. Why? What Happened To The Original Prosthesis Papyrus And Sans? We're In Undertale Along With The Other Au Skeletons. We Can't Remember Anything Important Or Personal, At Least, I Can't. Can You?" He looks at you, a faint feeble look of hope that you crush with a silent shake of your head.

"all i remember," You start slowly, looking into your memories, "are like- it's hard to describe it dammit but, i can remember our lives. how we grew up, how we lived, i can remember our apartment. our childhood, all that shit but anything specific like names and faces they all come up blank... that the same for you?" His sullen nod pulls you down the rope just a bit. 

You frown and close your eyes, trying to remember what happened, but the last thing you remember is...

_ Closing the door to the apartment, you groan and stretch, sighing in relief when you feel your limbs pop. "I'm home!" You call out, abandoning your shoes to the side and shedding your coat to hang at the side. "-̶̈́ͅ-̵̦̾-̶͕̈́ ? You order dinner yet or am I callin' in the take out?" You ask aloud as you toss your bag onto the couch and head into the kitchen. There's a strange air around the apartment, you can't put your finger on it. It makes you cautious as you head towards the kitchen, just in case, you grab a fairly thick book as you venture towards the kitchen where your brother should be.You enter the kitchen, holding a book in your hands and pause as your see your brother, your eyes widen and you almost drop the book in shock.";-̶̳̊-̴̬̀-̸̛͓." He's- he's- _

_ "-̶̈́ͅ-̵̦̾-̶͕̈́!!"  
CRASH  
" **-̶̳̊-̴̬̀-̸̛͓**! WAI-"  
_

_ D a r k n e s s  _

_Knock knock knock_

You both jolt, instantly on your feet- so fast you hardly remembered standing up in the first place. There's a pounding in your chest- can't be your heart, must be your new SOUL... Wait, how would your SOUL look now? You--

A muffled voice came from the door, " _VISOR? CHINE? ARE YOU ALRIGHT IN THERE? I-IT'S UM, IT'S TANGO, BONES, BLUE AND RED._ " 

" _WE HAVE YOUR SLEEPING CLOTHES!_ " Another muffled voice exclaimed, you share a glance and sigh. 

"Do I Have-" Your brother asks, motioning to his face, you shake your head.

"nah, you look shitty like usual but you don't look like you'd been crying." You tell him, he'd wiped the tear tracks rather well. You couldn't really tell he'd been crying at all. "c'mon."

Together, you both head over to the door to open it and true to the muffled voices earlier on, Tango, Bones, Blue and Red were there. Spare clothing in each their arms as promised they'd said much earlier on. Bones, Blue and Tango beamed, though all four skeletons look relieved to see the both of you just fine. You withhold a snort, did they really expect you and your brother to break into a fight in private or hurt each other or something ridiculous like that?

...

Maybe, but not _now_ of all times. 

"HELLO YOU TWO! WE HAVE BROUGHT YOU SPARE CLOTHING TO SLEEP IN!" Blue exclaimed, holding up the promised shirts, they were short sleeved and naturally light blue in color. You actually crack a smile at the sight of the fluffy looking clouds printed on one shirt. You glance over to Red, he's got plain black shorts with a red streaks on the side. 

Your brother accepts the offered clothes- Tango's given a baggy pair of red orange sweats while Bones gave two plain white shirts, though you catch one of the shirts having something printed on it. You can't really see it before your brother folds the clothes and holds it close. "THANK YOU VERY MUCH TANGO, BONES." He says, smiling at them both, Tango and Bones beam back at him.

You accept too and really the sparkling smile that Blue gives you is near blinding. Red thankfully just gives you a smirk, "thanks you two, i'll clean 'em and return 'em to ya after we get our own clothes." 

The swapped Sans perked, "AH YES! WE'LL GO SHOPPING TOMORROW A FEW HOURS AFTER BREAKFAST IF THAT'S ALRIGHT WITH YOU BOTH!"

"gotcha, thanks. so bro, you gonna change now or-" He doesn't give you any warning, just shoves you out of the doorway and into the hall and then closing the door behind you. "- change now. right, _thanks for the warning_ _!_ " You exclaim sarcastically from behind the door.

" _YOU ARE QUITE WELCOME._ " Your brother calls out just as sarcastically, you snort and lean against the door to wait. You remember you're not alone though as you see the four surprised skeletons. 

Red's the first to break out of the surprise, "so you going now or..." He trails off as you shake your head and open your coat, you unzip one of the bigger pockets and stuff the offered clothing into it. Inwardly, you're surprised as you do so, you don't feel any resistance at all as you shove the clothes into it and the pocket doesn't even bulge- magic was such bullshit and the magic you wrote about these coats were such amazing bullshit... You're going to have to check what Prosthesis Sans had in his pockets. Your pockets now? 

Nevermind, that was definitely for later. "nah, just finished talkin' a bit with my bro about... all of this. after he changes he's gonna let me back in so i can deal with his visor." You reply, zipping the pocket close closing your coat, patting it down to silently marvel the fact that you really didn't feel anything bulging from the coats. 

The other skeletons are giving you looks for that, they've obviously noticed it as well, you chuckle, "magic pockets." Was all you said, because that was really what they were. Magic pockets. 

Blue and Tango 'Oooh'd' at that, Bones and Red were definitely curious over the matter. "HOW DOES THAT WORK? IS IT LIKE WHATEVER ALPHYS DID FOR OUR PHONES?" Bones questioned, surprising you a bit. So they had the whole, 'phone inventory' thing that Alphys had given Frisk in the game? Cool.

"if it gives you the ability to store more shit than you should then probably yeah." You answer with a shrug, actually that should be like it right? You'd need to think more about it. But not now.

Admittedly it's starting to feel a bit awkward leaning against your brother's door and facing four skeletons that shouldn't really exist but do. 

And thinking more into it isn't going to help you in the long run at all so you're extremely relieved and surprised when the door suddenly opens. You yelp and tilt back only to be caught by your brother's hand which latched unto the back of your coat again. "fucking- a warning would have been nice you know asshole!" You exclaim as you're pushed upright. 

"IT PROBABLY WOULD HAVE BEEN." Your brother snarked back with a smirk. He's no longer wearing Prosthesis Papyrus' clothing, which both relieves you and weirds you out as you see him wearing Tango's sweatpants and Bones' plain white shirt. He's barefoot too, so he's an inch or so shorter now and his t shirt is short sleeved so it reveals his arms. His skeletal, bone arms which had faint scratches and cracks. He's kept his gloves on though, it probably felt weird enough to expose himself wearing only a t shirt. 

You focus your gaze on his face, unwilling to look at the rest of him. It's a wonder that he'd been able to change out of Papyrus' clothing, maybe it was muscle memory that helped? Or well, ingrained habit to the bones? You have no fucking idea, but your brother was doing great in seeming fine with the fact his new bones were out in the open. You were dreading changing yourself, to see underneath the cloth on what you've done to poor Sans, thankfully though you have some time before you had to do that.

Maybe after you change in the safety of your room you could break down because this wasn't really helping your situation a bit. 

You aren't looking at them so you don't see the way the other skeletons are looking at your brother's uncovered arms with complicated looks. Your brother sees them though, and he shifts in place, crossing his arms and looking away. "YOU LOOK NICE!" Bones abruptly says out of nowhere, surprising everyone. His cheekbones color a bit when you all look at him, "AHEM, YOU LOOK- NICE IN CASUAL CLOTHING. YOUR PREVIOUS CLOTHES WERE OBVIOUSLY GREAT BUT-" He rambles a bit, getting a bit flustered over his own words.

Your brother coughs, looking a bit flustered himself. Aw, there was even a slight digital blush matching on his visor, that's adorable. You were going to give him shit for it tomorrow. "AH, THANK YOU BONES. THESE CLOTHES ARE QUITE COMFY SO NO DOUBT I WILL BE ABLE TO COMFORTABLY SLEEP IN THEM. THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR THEM, YOU TOO TANGO." He says, causing Bones to smile sheepishly with Tango beaming between them. 

It was wholesome and you wanted to simultaneously laugh and gag because your brother was involved. 

"so, time for visor maintenance?" You chimed in, and instantly the wholesome atmosphere falters a bit. You almost regret breaking it, but you _do_ need to deal with your brother's visor. And possibly talk more, but to be honest, you're so tired. You don't really want to talk tonight, but you would if your brother would. 

Said brother straightened and his face smoothed over his face, the blush both on his face and screen disappear and he smiles amicably at the others, "INDEED. I'M FEELING VERY TIRED AND I'M SURE MY BROTHER FEELS THE SAME. IT'S BETTER TO DO THIS SOONER RATHER THAN LATER." He said, grabbing the back of your coat- what the hell is with him grabbing the back of coat? You don't really remember your brother doing that often. Actually wait, that was a Prosthesis Papyrus thing wasn't it? 

Your brother must have some of Papyrus' habits and traits already, from taking off his clothing to grabbing the back of your coat- shit, did you have Sans' habits and traits? You must have, you know how to deal with his visor after all. You take in a deep breath as your brother drags you back into the room. "GOODNIGHT TANGO, BONES, BLUE AND RED. I'LL SEE YOU IN THE MORNING." He bade, smiling at the four of them. 

Tango gave him a soft smile, "AH, ALRIGHT! GOODNIGHT THEN VISOR. SLEEP WELL!" Bones nodded along with him.

"GOODNIGHT! SEE YOU IN THE MORNING!" Blue exclaimed brightly, you and your brother are blinded for the nth time by his shining optimism. Stars above, you might lose your vision yourself in the near future maybe from all this shininess. 

Red gave your brother a terse nod, "yeah, night... oh yeah, chine, axe n' crooks are waitin' for ya in the livin' room. said they'd head back to the cottage wit' ya when y'er done." You blink in surprise. 

"uh what? why?" Red could only give you a shrug. "alright i guess- tell 'em i won't take long. they can go on ahead if they want, but tell them thanks anyway?" The Fell Sans nodded back, hands shoved into his jacket. You wonder if you could find a jacket like his and Axe's, you love the look of their jackets. 

With that said, your brother says his goodnights once more before closing the door again. His straight posture slouches instantly against the door and you give a small chuckle, "you weren't kidding when you said you were tired huh." It's not a question, more of an obvious statement that has him scoffing. 

"Obviously." He retorts quietly, letting go of your coat and turning on his heel, heading right over to his bed. You glance around the room, he's dragged a stray chair closer to the bed, his previous clothes- Prosthesis Papyrus' clothes- _his_ clothes now fuck- are neatly folded at the edge of the bed and along with his boots. He picks them up, setting them on a nearby drawer, you take a few steps closer as he opens one of the pouches. "I Checked One Of The Pouches And Found This." 

He pulls out an item and instantly you're at the very edge of the rope. Your breath hitches as you instantly realize what the fuck your brother is holding. It's so much larger than the pouch but thanks to magic it's managed to fit in it. It's a welding gun, a modified and steampunk looking welding gun, the nozzle is thinly small, so small it was more like a needle than a nozzle but it's precision was greatly useful and needed. ~~_You wouldn't have to need them if you hadn't \- -written the fucking- provoked those damned-_~~

_ There's someone screaming in the background, sounded like sobbing too. Was that your bro? You can't feel anything. Which was fine, hey bro stop crying you were fine, you were fine, y ou we re f i n e- _

Your vision blurs a bit as a violent shiver overtakes you. He has them, _he has them the tools he-_ "Brother. Breathe." His voice quickly breaks you out of your thoughts before you could spiral further. He's in front of you, arms open but he doesn't touch you, you don't let him. You're fine, you're _fine_ \- you just, forgot how to breathe a bit. 

Sucking in a deep breath, you give him a shaky smirk, "guess that solves the question if you got the shit huh? and that we have all their shit." You say, your brother's arms drop down and you ignore the pointed disappointment and disapproval your brother shoots you. He's put the welding gun back into the pouch. "good, good. you probably got everything for the spin-spi-" You suck in another deep breath, _fucking say it_ \- "spinal maintenance. which shouldn't happen for a bit. probably a few days right? we got it, i managed to get your visor so like, you can do my-" _Say it-_

"Speaking Of My Visor." Your brother, bless him the bastard, interrupts you. He's sitting down on the bed, looking at you with those digital orange eyes on a black screen of his, "I'd Like You To Take Them Off And Do Maintenance... And Afterwards Can you..." He hesitates, you have a feeling on what he's asking. "Can You Sing Me To Sleep Please?" 

You can't hold in the snort and he gives you an annoyed look, "damn, okay- yeah sorry for- yeah sure lil' bro, i'll sing you a song." It'll help the both of you anyway. You don't bring out the fact you haven't sung for him in _months_. You'd both been doing so well.

_ You started singing him quiet lullabies when it was just the two of you together, just the two of you in the cell- you'd make up songs for him, or sing whenever he wanted you to sing. Even when you were in pain. But he never asked when you were in pain, you still sang anyway. The singing was better than the silence in the cell anyway... You still sang for him from time to time after you both were free and grew up fully, even after he started towering over you the damned bastard. He was still your little brother though. Always. _

Or at least, from what you can remember anyway. "guess we're not talking about it all huh? not tonight at least?" His agreeing nod has you sighing with relief. "okay great, i'm already so exhausted. we'll talk more on a later date then." Procrastination at it's finest.

"Unfortunately Yes." Your brother sighs, you step towards the chair, sitting down as he goes to lay on the bed, pausing first to hesitantly take off his gloves, setting them aside before tucking himself underneath the covers. "Hold On A Moment..." He makes himself comfortable, you're a bit confused but then you realize; he wanted to feel like he was just going to actually close his eyes voluntarily. Not as if he was just going to switch off his ability to see. You swallow a hard lump in your throat and wait patiently.

He stares up at the ceiling after laying his head on his pillow, "Alright, Here We Go." He murmurs to himself as his digital eyes close, he reaches up and presses against the visor. Wingdings flash through the screen 'LOADING- MAGIC DISCONNECTING- VISION SYSTEM DEACTIVATING-' Your brother breathes a big sigh of relief. With them off, you reach over and gently pry them off his face. The hole underneath is revealed and you hesitate. 

"you really want them off tonight? you'll probably panic tomorrow mornin' like a dumbass." You tell him quietly and softly, "papyrus' could sleep wit' 'em on. usually did." 

Your brother frowns, "He Usually Sleep In Places That Aren't That Safe Now Doesn't He? I'll- I'll Be Fine. Just, I Don't Know, Lay Them On The Next Pillow Or Anywhere Easy For Me To Reach." He replies with a huff, "... It'll Be Better To Sleep Without Them On. For Now Anyway. We're Both Safe Here So..." You exhale, not quite a sigh but near it, and set his visor on the other pillow.

"a'ight fine. they're on the other side of your pillow." You take his hand, his boney fucking hand, and guide him to them. He touches them for a bit before taking his hand back. "i'll do maintenance in the morning by the way. just gonna focus on- the other thing."

"And Singing?"

You roll your eyes, letting yourself smile softly- not like he could see it anyway. "yeah yeah... 'sides, we both know this whole thing works better with the singing. you're the one who insisted putting this whole embarrassing thing into it." You mutter to him, adjusting your chair to sit closer to the bed. 

He laughs, "You Let Me Do It! It Was Something We _Both_ Agreed On You Asshole." You did, but hey, you're not going to complain. Much. 

You just hope this actually works. It should right? You managed to deal with your brother's visor with no problem, it was going to be one hell of a damn problem if you couldn't heal your brother's SOUL. _~~Please work.~~_

"a'ight a'ight... what do you want me to sing anyway?" You ask, leaning back against the the chair. He reaches a hand out and you take it into yours. Your hands are still covered in gloves but your brother doesn't say anything about it, if anything he's a bit relieved. Whether or not it was because he couldn't feel your bone hands or the fact you were actually going to sing.

You're both grown ass men, young men sure but still men.

It should be embarrassing for _either_ of you at the fact your little brother still wanted you to sing him a song to sleep, but fuck embarrassment if it'll actually help your brother. Besides, it wasn't as if anyone was listening in or going to listen to you sing your brother to sleep. 

"I..." Your brother's face flushes and he looks away from you, well, he turns his head away from you because he can't see you. You focus on his colored cheeks, ignoring his hole, ignore the hole ignore the hole ignore _the hole-_ "Isabella's Lullaby, By ." He finally says quietly and you really can't hold back the snort that comes out of your mouth.

"what seriously? bro-" You laugh a bit, leaning in to whisper at him, "you're a fucking weeb i swear." 

Your brother snarls at you and you dodge his attempt to hit you, "SHUT THE FUCK UP! LIKE YOU'RE ONE TO TALK! YOU ALREADY SAID YOU WERE GOING TO DO IT SO STOP BEING AN ASSHOLE AND SING ALREADY!" He exclaims loudly with a huff. 

Fondly shaking your head, you grin, "okay okay. bossy little shit..."

You look over to your brother and hold his hand with both of yours, focusing and letting yourself get immersed into singing, secretly praying that this was going to work...

You begin to hum just as you feel _something_ from the deepest part of you _reach out-_ you close your eyes and open your mouth.

" _let me sing a lullaby-_ "

You don't notice the fact the door opened slightly a few moments earlier and that a certain skeleton was listening in.

* * *

G hadn't meant to come home so late, he'd been a little... held up alright? And really he hadn't meant to be so nosy- actually that was a lie. Green would wonderfully point out that G was one of the nosiest people he knew the bothersome brother, but had G known that he'd stumble upon what was clearly a personal moment between the two new skeleton brothers brought to the mansion by the machine.

He'd been curious about the two. Coming home late much to the ire of his brother and a few other skeletons like him, he slogged through the lecture with finesse before learning about the new skeletons in the house. He'd been pretty shocked to see the picture of a faceless Papyrus in the group chat the last time he'd checked it.

Stars, if that was Papyrus -or Visor as he now went by- then what the hell was going on with his Sans? 

Apparently nothing, no major injuries as far as anyone else could tell. Though G had a feeling there was more to it, and he wasn't alone on it, Axe admitted to him quietly on how he suspected Chine's spine to be made of metal, like completely so which was- how would that even work? Even for humans, completely metal spines were unheard of and the rare few humans that had metallic spines weren't completely made out of it and there were countless complications behind _that_ biological and medical mess.

Nonetheless, his interest had been piqued by the newest Sans and Papyrus pair. 

It made him regret a bit being late to the feast and meeting them there, it sounded like they gave quite the impact with the others with how much they were talking and fussing about them. But then again, they were the newest problematic brothers that'd been accepted into their therapeutic household- seriously, most problematic familial relationships were gradually being fixed just staying here. Which is nice but really, it was almost ridiculous.

Almost.

So, after catching up with what he'd miss, G decided to take a quick peek at the two new skeletons. Just to see them for himself, maybe even meet them afterwards- or one of them at least. Chine wasn't going to stay in the mansion, he would eventually leave his brother's room to sleep over at the cottage with Axe and Crooks.

He didn't have to point out how weird that was, everyone else was already doing it.

His plans to spy on the new brothers backfired a bit with him peeking into Visor's new room at the most inopportune time, but holy _fuck_ would the others lose their shit over the fact that the two brothers who'd been insulting each other for most of the time they'd been in this new universe, were actually so close as to have Chine _sing a lullaby_ to Visor.

" _let me sing a lullaby, as you close your eyes... and as you're drifting off to sleep, how i hope that the dreams that you find are, bright-"_

That's-that's almost disgustingly sweet and adorable, G thought to himself as he watched through the crack of the door as Chine sit by the bed and hold Visor's hand with his eyes closed. Chine's voice was low and soothing, G could almost even hear some music that came with the lyrics. "And the others were so worried 'bout you two." G muttered quietly, unable to look away from the touching sight, though he probably should.

As he watched though, he couldn't help but notice the faint fluctuation of magic. His sockets narrowed, and he adjusted a bit, looking at a new angle to see Chine better.

Wisps of magic bloomed from Chine's hand, flowing out of his hand and into Visor's.

Well, if that wasn't interesting...

" _-but don't kiss me goodbye, 'cause i know that i'll see you on the, other side. i will think of our song when the nights are too long, i'll dream of you for that's where i belong-_ "

G looked back at Chine instead of the joined hands, seeing the way he was lost in singing. He looked serene almost, though it was mixed with something else, nostalgia perhaps? Or maybe a bit of pain and sadness. G couldn't tell from the crack in the door.

Shit, for as interesting as this was and as lovely as Chine's singing is, G realizes that he really should close the damn door and be on his way instead of continuing to peek into a room like a damn creep- he may be a flirt and a nosy one to boot but this was admittedly shady shit that he shouldn't pull. His face heats up a bit and he forces himself to close the door, gently, without sound. Don't want to disrupt that atmosphere in there.

G groans and steps away from the door, palming his face and berating himself. Green was right, he was too nosy for his own good. 

...

Still though, that was a nice song, Chine had a great voice and he wondered a bit on that bit of magic... 

The others were worrying too much about these two, sure they seem to have a rough relationship but as far as G could tell, they genuinely cared for each other. At least Chine did, he cared a whole lot if he was singing a lullaby to his brother.

Shaking his head, he went over to the balcony at the end of the hall. Didn't want the scent of smoke to linger inside the house after all.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also someone asked about sending me fan art and  
> i honestly don't have anywhere to send fan art? i don't have other social medias, but should i make? i'm not really good with social media stuff.  
> i do want to see any possible fan art though  
> maybe i'll make a tumblr or amino account, i have no idea i'm not sure  
> that being said, we got our first fan art and it's amazing;  
> [By Aubri_Kun99](https://twitter.com/IJustWannaCrY9/status/1287039696288317440)  
> now you know what chine and visor look like heh
> 
> p.s. sure there are a few mispellings and grammar problems here and there but the lvs and capitalization of certain sentences aren't a mistake  
> p.p.s. don't mistake visor, both he and chine are fucking weebs which is why i chose isabella's lullaby which is a magnificent piece of work let me tell you.  
> p.p.p.s probably was a bit cringe to put the singing down but hey i was planning for it since the start of the story. for chine to sing his brother to sleep with one of the skeletons (went with g here bc opportunity rose up) listening in. now that that's done, my next goal is spinal maintenance.  
> p.p.p.p.s this is one long ass chapter. 7.4k  
> p.p.p.p.p.s the lyrics from this chapter is AmaLee's Original Lyrics for Isabella's Lullaby from The Promised Neverland. [here's the video for it.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQj1YBlFQm0)  
> let me know what you guys think and i hope you enjoyed


	8. Sleep Well

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> youre probably going to need a wingdings translator  
> im certainly not going to translate at the end of this
> 
> also apologies for the jokes  
> i am  
> not that good at them  
> i only searched for some jokes and puns  
> hopefully i get better at them

* * *

☜︎💣︎👌︎⚐︎👎︎✋︎💣︎☜︎☠︎❄︎ ✋︎💧︎ ✌︎💧︎☹︎☜︎☜︎🏱︎ 📫︎ ☺︎🕆︎👎︎☝︎☜︎ 🕈︎✋︎❄︎☟︎✋︎☠︎ ✞︎✋︎👍︎✋︎☠︎✋︎❄︎✡︎ 📫︎ 🕆︎☠︎✌︎👌︎☹︎☜︎ ❄︎⚐︎ ✌︎👍︎❄︎✋︎✞︎✌︎❄︎☜︎

|

☜︎💣︎👌︎⚐︎👎︎✋︎💣︎☜︎☠︎❄︎ ✋︎💧︎ ✌︎🕈︎✌︎😐︎☜︎ 📫︎ ☺︎🕆︎☼︎✡︎ 🕈︎✋︎❄︎☟︎✋︎☠︎ ✞︎✋︎👍︎✋︎☠︎✋︎❄︎✡︎ 📫︎ 🕆︎☠︎✌︎👌︎☹︎☜︎ ❄︎⚐︎ ✌︎👍︎❄︎✋︎✞︎✌︎❄︎☜︎

* * *

There's a strange sensation in your chest, a sort of tether stretched out and moving. It's newly formed but at the same time it felt like it was there all a long. 

If you were a bit more coherent and less focused, you'd be goggling over how weird the sensation of using actual magic felt like. And at the fact you used _actual magic_. _~~It's not yours though.~~_

But you were less coherent, and a tad bit focused on the fact that your brother was now sleeping peacefully on the bed. A sigh of relief escapes your mouth as his chest steadily moves up and down, breaths coming in and out. You ignore on how strange you felt, still compartmentalizing a bit- okay so maybe your brother was kind of right with the fact that your habit of repression got a bit worse. But you were doing fine, for the most part- right now at the moment anyway.

Your brother came first. Besides, you're pretty sure that tomorrow your brother was going to give you a lot of shit for compartmentalizing it when he was more energized and processed everything properly. You can already imagine the annoying passive-aggressive actions and insults he was going to aim at you, and the non passive-aggressive actions and insults too. 

You definitely are _not_ smiling. Nope...

Okay so maybe you were smiling _just a bit_ \- it wasn't like anyone else would see it.

Shaking your head, you stand from your seat and carefully reach over to your brother's visor, you fiddle with the inner surface of it, the magic circuit-like design on your gloves glow slightly as you boot the visor up manually. Sans'- er, your? Gloves were fucking amazing and honestly you can't wait to fiddle with it and the other tools in your coat. 

_~~After your breakdown and existential crisis of course.~~ _

The inner screen of the visor boots to life once more, though only for briefly. "how do i- oh right, verbal fucking-" You take in a deep breath and aim the visor at your slumbering brother, "initiate scanning sequence; papyrus- 'visor' script." The 'Visor' part was new but you remember it being included in the last recorded scan so the visor must have accepted the nickname as your brother's new name... Along with the fact Papyrus was now your brother's official name.

 _Fuck_.

 _'don't think about it. focus.'_ You scold yourself as the visor thrummed, the screen loading and showing the quickly filling percentage gauge that signified the scan. In no time it completely fills and information types itself out into the screen, your sockets squint a bit as you read through it. 

PAPYRUS 'VISOR' SCRIPT  
LV 9   
HP 340 [LAST RECORDED SCAN]  
AT 30 | 50 [WITH/WITHOUT VISOR LAST RECORDED SCAN]  
DF 10 | 30 [WITH/WITHOUT VISOR LAST RECORDED SCAN]  
* SLEEPING PEACEFULLY WITH A FULLY HEALED SOUL.  
CONNECTION: STABLE   
SOUL STATUS: STABLE - FULLY RESTORED  
HYPNOS WAVELENGTH: RECEIVING - 40% [COURT SESSION UNABLE TO INITIATE]  
HYPNOS STATUS: ONLINE -   
DATA STATUS: ENCRYPTED | LOCKED  
RECEIVER STATUS: UNABLE TO CONNECT  


You breathe a sigh of relief. Everything looked fine- _is_ fine. 

The Hypnos Wavelength was only just at forty percent which was honestly less than you were expecting what with how you were at the final notch of the rope but you certainly weren't going to complain. It should go down the farther you were apart, which meant you should really leave. You weren't really like Sans after all, you don't think you can stay awake the whole night by your brother's side unfortunately.

Not yet at least and not without the help of something to keep you awake. Besides, you wanted to sleep yourself so sleeping apart it was. 

It was going to be weird but you can't help it. 

Even if you wanted to sleep together in a closer vicinity you weren't keen on sleeping in magically enhanced straps, and you knew that your brother would agree. Sleeping apart was the best option for everyone involved.

You shut the visor off and carefully place it back on the bed, "night bro bro. sleep well." You bade him, about to pat his sleeping and tucked figure but a sharp pain comes from the back of your head and you wince, stepping back instead. Right, "that's my cue to go." You mutter with a shake of your head as the sharp pain faded only slightly. "see you in the morning." You tell his sleeping form quietly and pad towards the door.

You ignore the part of you that wants to stay back, that wants to stay by your brother's side- it's mostly your brotherly instinct talking but you know that egging that on was something much more troublesome.

~~_ stay. _ ~~

You pause at the doorknob, the pain in your head throbs and you grit your teeth together. Shit.

~~_ stay stay stay **stay stay stay connect brother must be safe** _ ~~

Fuck, writing about this was one thing but experiencing it was a whole other matter. Your respect for Sans raises higher than ever, and your self-loathing for the fact _you_ were the one to cause this grows just as much. 

~~**_ stay connect brother must be safe connect connect connect sleep sleep sleep stay connect sleep brother must be safe _ ** ~~

Damn you and your brother's want for angst.

~~_** ⧫︎♒︎♏︎ ♍︎□︎◆︎❒︎⧫︎ ❍︎◆︎⬧︎⧫︎ ♌︎♏︎♑︎♓︎■︎ ♍︎□︎■︎■︎♏︎♍︎⧫︎ ⬧︎●︎♏︎♏︎◻︎ ⬧︎⧫︎♋︎⍓︎ ♌︎❒︎□︎⧫︎♒︎♏︎❒︎ ❍︎◆︎⬧︎⧫︎ ♌︎♏︎ ⬧︎♋︎♐︎♏︎ ** _ ~~

You clutch the doorknob and turn it, hurrying out of the room and close the door behind you. 

The distance lightens the pain, and the physical barrier of the door helps and you take in a deep breath, you're too focused on ignoring whatever the fuck was happening in the back of your mind to notice the faint smell of cigarette smoke that came from the nearby open balcony. "red said axe 'n crooks were waitin' for me yeah?" You mutter aloud, rubbing your skull with a sigh. You step away from the door and step towards the stairs, focused entirely on your goals for tonight;

Get away from your brother.

Walk with Axe and Crooks back to the cottage.

Secure your window bed room, claim it as yours officially.

Possibly breakdown in your room after doing that.

Sleep in awesome window bed.

Awesome goals if you say so yourself, and you are saying so yourself so of course they were awesome goals.

That totally made sense.

As you start walking down the stairs, you don't notice the curious tall skeleton that peered at the back of your skull. 

The niggling feeling in the back of your skull was ignored along with the rest of your not-goal oriented thoughts. 

You don't meet G on the same day as the rest of the skeletons and that was fine.

* * *

 _** Unknown Number 11:29 PM  
** _ hey :3

_** You 11:35 PM ** _   
Oh? Who is this? I don't recall giving anyone my number tonight.

_** Unknown Number 11:36 PM  
** _ that's because i sneakily put my number in your phone before you left and get your own number in return>:]

_** You 11:36 PM ** _   
Ah, makes sense.  
Fae right?

_** Unknown Number 11:36 PM  ** _   
i feel slightly offended that you forgot my name after the time we had together  
and you had to leave so early too  
its faye with a y bonehead

_** You 11:37 PM ** _   
Snrk  
Sorry sweetheart, had to leave early. Family reasons.

_** Unknown Number 11:37 PM ** _   
ah i understand  
family comes first and all that  
anyway when are you coming back?

_** You 11:37 PM ** _   
I'm staying home sweet cheeks. Brother of mine wouldn't like it if I left so soon after coming back home.   
And honestly I'd like to stay home.  
But I did enjoy our time together ;)

_** Unknown Number 11:39 PM  ** _   
that's fine.  
what i actually meant was if we're ever going to meet up again.  
i loved our time together too ;3  
that was one of the best rides i've ever had <3  
wouldn't mind getting one again in the near future~

_** You 11:39 PM ** _   
Heh.  
Well I wouldn't mind either.  
And if my brother hadn't called me back I would've left you my number anyway so...  
Consider yourself lucky sweetheart, I'll be saving your number in my phone.  
Let me know whenever you want a ride ;)

_** Fairy Faye 11:41 PM ** _   
lucky me <3  
you free in a couple of days?

G hummed, leaning against the balcony, cigarette tucked between two fingers on one hand while the other held his phone.

He honestly hadn't expected that, for the woman he slept with to suddenly contact him out of the blue despite the fact he hadn't left his number with her. But apparently she had the insight to secretly save her number in his phone while getting his own number in turn. A bit concerning but smart, G had to admit, he liked the fire Faye had. 

Not to mention she'd been a _really good_ lay. One of the best he could say with lazy confidence.

She'd been the reason why he missed dinner, and came back so late to the mansion.

Green definitely would have been disappointed had he known, but G hadn't told him about his escapades in one night stands- most of them anyway. 

Hey, they were on the surface and there were plenty attractive people, humans and monsters alike, that just rubbed him the right way. 

And Faye was now on his small list of contacts he had that he would return to whenever they both felt like it. 

Just as he was about to reply to his new bed partner, he heard a nearby door open and close almost abruptly from within the hallway. His eyelights peered curiously at the skeleton in the hallway. 

It was Chine. 

G opened his mouth, about to say something to gain the his attention but pauses as he watches Chine mutter something to himself while rubbing his skull. He seemed distracted, something akin to grim determination on his face as he turned in place, stepping towards the stairs, no doubt about to leave for the cottage with Axe and Crooks. They did say they would be waiting in the living room for him. 

G hesitated in gaining Chine's attention, this would be his chance to actually introduce himself to the skeleton without spying on his personal moments like a damned creep. The thought made him cringe and he back tracked on his thoughts a bit, Chine looked tired, he obviously was. And he'd just put his brother to sleep by singing a lullaby- and doing something weird with his magic. Something G was curious about yeah but was now really the time to ask?

It was- almost twenty minutes to midnight. 

Yeah probably not.

With a sigh, the taller skeleton decided to not say anything and just watch the newest Sans the Skeleton leave down the stairs. "Maybe tomorrow." He mused to himself. 

His phone buzzed in his hands. Ah right Faye.

He thought about it, before shaking his head and texted back to her.

He probably wouldn't be free for the next few days. But if he was, he'd let her know.

With that said, he pocketed his phone and brought the cigarette to his mouth, taking a long drag and turned his head away from the balcony entrance to breathe out a gray cloud of smoke.

Faintly he wondered if either skeleton brothers smoked.

* * *

As you enter the living room area, you see not only Axe and Crooks within the room but Pyrus, Mutt, Stretch, Classic and Red. 

You shift in place as their sockets turn towards you, "hey." You greet them all with a small smile. You were feeling much better now that you were away from your brother. The pain receded mostly, though it was still there. It would completely be gone as soon as you left the mansion, you think- maybe half way towards the cottage? It was naturally far enough right? Right.

You receive various greetings back, though obviously Pyrus' greeting was the loudest, "HELLO CHINE! I TAKE IT THAT YOUR BROTHER IS NOW ASLEEP?" He exclaims, standing besides the sitting Classic, who in turn was sitting right besides Stretch on the couch alongside Mutt and Red. Axe and Crooks were sitting on the other sofa chairs compared to them. 

"you betcha. i'm feelin' like hittin' the hay myself." You tell him and a stray thought comes across your mind- you smile at Pyrus, "hey i got a question for ya pyrus, well, for you and the rest of you taller skeletons." Pyrus tilts his head, looking oh so innocent. He and Crooks looked very innocent while the rest of the more lazier skeletons rose a brow at you. 

"OH! WELL, WHAT IS IT CHINE? I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITIES!" Pyrus declared, smiling widely at you. You might invest some sunglasses to protect your vision from the brightness that was Pyrus, and the soft smile that was still somehow shiny from Crooks. Yeah, you're surrounded by glowing cinnamon rolls. Stars above. 

"what'cha need chine?" Mutt questioned quietly from his seat with an easy but questioning smile. Man, both he and Red had some serious chompers, not to mention their mirroring single gold tooth. You yourself had some new kinds of teeth, you didn't think it'd be that different but wow- wait, focus. Focus.

You clear your throat, "well," You fake a serious look- you think it's convincing with how the lazier skeletons straightened a bit, you try not to shift at the sharper looks in their sockets. "do you taller skeletons sleep longer in bed?" 

.

..

...

Simultaneously, Pyrus and Crooks' confused 'HUH?' was paired with various other sudden snorts and snickers.

Stars, the fact you managed to get not only Axe laughing, but the others as well felt _great_. Did monsters produce dopamine in the same way that humans did? Did skeletons? You didn't really care but this was great. This was fucking _amazing_ , breakdown pushed back even further thanks to this. You feel like this was one hell of a win.

It suddenly clicks for both versions of Papyrus, Crooks lets out a small annoyed sigh that startles a snort out of you while Pyrus groans aloud, "OH. MY. _GOD_ \- I SHOULD NOT HAVE EXPECTED ANYTHING ELSE FROM A VERSION OF MY BROTHER!" He says loudly, huffing with his arms crossed, the sight gives you a big wide smile. 

"what? 's a legitimate question." Classic defended you, grinning widely at his brother. 

"yeah py, it's a legitimate question, do ya need to _sleep_ on it?" Mutt asked and you're doing a bad job trying to repress your amusement as from there it goes downhill for Pyrus and Crooks. Though honestly, it seems like they're restraining their amusement, and some relief? You don't get it, but you're feeling better already. 

You still feel tired though, and the pain was gradually coming back up from the back of your mind. You needed to get further away, that and you really want to sleep. It's made clear when a yawn breaks through from your mouth, which gapes wide as you let out an infectious yawn that infects the others easily. You watch with some interest as Axe yawned after you, then Stretch, then Red, Mutt, Classic- it also managed to get to Pyrus and Crooks! 

Yawns were truly one hell of a disease. 

"guess it's time for us to hit the hay." Classic says aloud, looking very amused from the epidemic of the yawning. "it's almost midnight, you 'n your bro have a day tomorrow, better go sleep now bud." He tells you, making you and the others nod in agreement.

"YES, WE SHOULD RETURN TO THE COTTAGE." Crooks agreed, standing up and stretching slightly- not enough to pop his bones though. "COME ALONG AXE, CHINE. IT IS TIME TO SLEEP!"

Axe was on his feet as soon as Crooks was standing, "a'ight bro. let's go chine, gotta get you to that window bed." He gives you a wink and if you weren't so tired, you'd probably feel even more happy than you felt right now- how could you not? Your favorite AU character winked at you! He laughed at your jokes and by stars above he and his brother pretty much are welcoming you to their home!

"oh definitely. i wanna sleep on that window bed!" 

"GOOD NIGHT AXE, CROOKS, CHINE! SLEEP WELL!"

"night guys, see ya tomorrow."

"night."

You along with the Horrortale brothers wave the others goodbye and goodnight, thankfully walking back to the cottage instead of using a shortcut. You may have... used magic to an extent already, you're still unsure about the Sans' natural skills at magic. _Especially_ his short cuts, you'd definitely have to experiment as soon as possible. And as safely as possible, same goes for your brothers.

You're startled out of your thoughts as you cross the doorway and out into the outside world, the cold night air hitting your face with full force but thankfully you were well prepared for it thanks to the heavy-ish clothing you were already wearing. Your scarf especially with a soft sigh.

"you alright?" You almost jump at Axe's voice, he's giving you a look of concern. Which was a bit weird- not a bad kind of weird! You were mostly used to seeing his face in a dark way and in different styles of art, but this was genuine concern and it was weird. Not a bad kind of weird of course! It was- nice. It was nice.

"yeah, sorry. i'm just really tired." You reply, giving him a small reassuring smile in return. 

"You Do Seem Rather Tired." Crooks said rather softly, making you look up to him. "We Should Hurry Towards The Cottage Then." It seems like he wants to ask something but you're distracted as you look past his face towards the sky. 

You don't reply, looking wide-eyed at the sky. Oh wow.

The night sky was _beautiful_ in this universe. The sky seemed to be so clear here, thankfully there weren't a lot of clouds tonight so you could fully enjoy the stars out tonight.

"it's beautiful yeah?" 

You smile, glancing back at Axe who gave you a smile, a look of understanding on his face. He's remembering the comment you made before, on how you could finally see the stars again but you didn't know that.

"Very Beautiful." Crooks agreed, smiling along with you and his brother.

You felt at peace.

* * *

Walking back to the cottage had been a good idea, Axe thinks. 

Usually, Axe wouldn't have hesitated to offer a shortcut for his brother to get back to the cottage sooner with him but with Chine with them, he thought otherwise. Walking back to the cottage underneath the night sky had been a great idea, with how Chine looked at the sky. 

His dim blue eyelights seemed to lighten up in shade, grow a bit in size and glow just a bit brighter. Though Chine and his brother hadn't been sealed underground like the most of them, Axe still could understand the awe on his face. He probably hadn't seen a clear sky in a long time, telling from the awed expression and smile on his face. 

Axe had to wonder on how things were in Chine's universe, on how bad things were for the air to pollute so much that the night sky was rarely ever seen. 

Or maybe something else was happening with Chine.

Either way, he was glad that instead of a shortcut he decided to walk back to their cottage with his brother and Chine.

"red told me you both were waiting for me," Chine said as they walked down the path towards the cottage, "ya didn't have to do that y'know." 

Axe shrugged, "yeah we know. but we wanted to." 

"Indeed. We Wanted To Escort You Back To The Cottage." His brother agreed, smiling softly, they were both flanking Chine who walked a bit in front of them. "It's Better To Come Home Together Than Alone." 

Chine hummed, "home huh. this'll be home for however long it'll be." Axe frowned as the smile faded at the sentence, before he could say anything though, another smile came to his face, "well, take care of me well you guys. lookin' forward to bein' your housemate." He told them both, flashing them a grin- he was still tired but by stars did he look better from back at the dinner table. His eyes were brighter and the cracks and scratches on his skull were less prominent with the exception of the big crack on his cheek. 

Papyrus beamed at him, "AS DO WE. WE WILL MAKE SURE TO TAKE CARE OF YOU CHINE!" He exclaimed, and Axe watched closely as genuine happiness bloomed on his face. It was a good kind of weird, to have someone other than himself to be so genuinely happy by his brother. Axe had the feeling he and his brother were going to get along great with Chine. 

The coat-wearing skeleton laughed brightly, "thanks big guy."

It doesn't take long for the three of them to end up back at the cottage. Papyrus showed Chine the secret place where they kept the extra key, just in case. It was located in a hidden compartment underneath one of chairs set on the porch. Along with the extra extra hidden key behind the wicker couch on the opposite side of the porch. They were the extra keys they'd have just in case one of them lost their keys, Papyrus gave Chine one of the keys, saying he would replace the extra key in the near future.

Chine had a small amused laugh at the fact there were hidden compartments and the extra keys, complimenting on how smart that was and thanked him.

"It's Officially Midnight. Let Us Go To Bed." Papyrus informed after locking the front door, the back door was already locked alongside every window in the cottage. 

On cue, Chine yawned and nodded, rubbing his eye socket. "sounds good to me. bed time... window bed time." Axe didn't really understand why Chine was so focused on the window bed part but who was he to judge? 

"g'night." Axe bade him as Chine opened the door to his new room, Chine yawned again and Axe actively fought against the yawn bubbling from his throat.

"Good Night Chine, Sleep Well."

Chine nodded back, "g'night sans. papyrus." He mutters, surprising him and Papyrus. Though he entered the room and closed the door before they could do anything else. 

"He..." Papyrus trailed off, looking shocked and lost as to what had happened. 

Sans could only shrug helplessly, he didn't know how to react to that but it was minutes after midnight and they were all tired, it was time to sleep.

Still though, that had been a bit strange but ultimately nice. 

* * *

Stepping into your new room, you didn't realize how heavy your shoulders were until you felt how light they were now that you were all alone. A groan escapes your lips as you take a few more steps into the room, the door was firmly closed- and locked just to be sure. You were... alone and safe. 

You could... breakdown right now. Stop compartmentalizing.

You take in a deep breath.

Actually you felt fine. You felt pleasant, there was a smile on your face and the pain in the very back of your mind was completely gone. You weren't at the end of your rope, the small pun session before you left the mansion had been nice, making the skeletons laugh and the walk to the cottage was great. The night sky's amazing, your new room as bare as it was, was cool. You had a fucking _window bed!_

The smile on your face grows a bit as you walk towards said window bed, taking off your coat and haphazardly throwing it off on the bed to the side. You climb on the window bed, looking out at the night sky with wide eye sockets. Entirely on instinct or maybe even habit, you absentmindedly take off your boots along with your harness and scarf. You sigh in comfort as you lean against the pillows already on the window bed. 

This was... good.

You could fall asleep right now... Though you should change into more comfortable clothing. Your clothes were fine but, you'd like to sleep in something softer. Where did- oh right. You sit up and reluctantly get off the window bed, padding over to the bed back towards his coat to get the clothes that Blue and Red provided him. 

Reaching into a magically enhanced pocket was both weird and cool, you're fairly sure you could fit your whole arm into the pocket if you tried, but you won't try for now. You just need the clothes. You find them quite easily, pull them out of the pocket very easily, and prepared to change... not as easily.

The pleasant atmosphere sours as you stare at your bare hands. You just took off your gloves, _the_ gloves, _Sans' gloves._

You weren't looking at your hand, it was Sans' hand. Bone skeleton hand, each phalange and metacarpal bones, was _Sans_. A fucking _skeleton_.

You make the mistake of looking at the dresser mirror at the side and suddenly the good mood you had been in is gone. 

You said you felt fine right? Pleasant? Good? 

_**Not anymore.** _

Metal. Metal _metal metal metal **metal metal your fault your fault your fault**_

You feel lightheaded, numb, you feel like you're floating right out of your body. Or rather, Sans' body. Because this was Sans' body. This wasn't yours, but now it was. 

And _you_ did this.

 _You_ wrote on how half of his body was made of fucking metal now, his spine, most of his ribs. _You_ were the reason _why_ it was made of fucking metal. _You and your brother_ were the reason why Prosthesis Sans and Papyrus were so fucked.

The metal starts right underneath the axis vertebrae, the second most vertebrae of the vertebral column that was the spine. From there, it just goes all the way towards the coccyx. The ribcage was mostly metal, but there were some ribs that were still bone but firmly attached to the metal rather permanently now. The sternum was completely metal, but you know there was pieces of bones hidden and melded into the metal and the right clavicle and left shoulder plate was also still just bone. 

Sans was just lucky the bones of his arms lasted long enough to survive and be used, along with his legs, but his spine had been too damaged to last. 

_You_ were just as lucky and...

When did you strip down your shirt? Fuck, fuck fuck fuck- you need to-

Hurriedly, you scramble away from the dresser mirror, clutching the bundle of clothing tightly in your hands. You take in a deep breath- it was rushed and gulped down too fast to _not_ hurt but hey, you don't have lungs anymore...

_Not helping._

You practically jam the shirt that Blue gave you, vision blurring a bit as you change your pants as well- don't look don't look don't look _don't look don't look_ -

"fuck. _fuck. **fuck.**_ " You whisper as you shakily pull your gloves back on, and wrap the scarf back around your neck. There's something wet on your face, getting on the pillow that was suddenly in front of your face too.

You don't remember laying down on the window bed and hugging the pillows. You don't remember when you started gasping against the pillow desperately with faint sobs. You don't remember how long it took for you to calm down. You don't really remember when you slipped into sleep, the sins of your actions crawling along your new spine- a consequence of said sins.

So much for not breaking down.

* * *

You open your eyes. Blinking incredulously as you stand in your room. You don't really remember what happened, or what was going on. You glance at the bars on the window, smoke curling into sight. No, wait, you didn't have a barred window in your room. At least, you think so.

The window disappears. But someone else appears on the cot in the corner of the room. You recognize them. It was _you_. 

You stare at _yourself_ , and _you_ stare back.

☜︎︎💣︎︎👌︎︎⚐︎︎👎︎︎✋︎︎💣︎︎☜︎︎☠︎︎❄︎︎

**|**

You open your eyes. Blinking incredulously as you stand in your room. You don't really remember what happened, or what was going on. You glance at the bars on the window, smoke curling into sight. Hold on, you didn't have a barred window in your room. You were sure about that. 

The window disappears. But someone else appears on the cot in the corner of the room. You recognize them. It was _you_. 

You stare at _yourself_ , and _you_ stare back.

☜︎︎💣︎︎👌︎︎⚐︎︎👎︎︎✋︎︎💣︎︎☜︎︎☠︎︎❄︎︎

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sweet dreams chine, visor.  
> or rather, have strange dreams.  
> strange, ominous dreams...


	9. Good Morning Cottage

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> almost double digits in chapters  
> that's going to be an accomplishment  
> also sorry if this seems a bit ooc for horrortale sans and papyrus  
> i know a lot of other writers write them better  
> still this is where horrortale sans and papyrus are more stable and living well so theyre more normalish  
> at least in their cottage theyre more normalish
> 
> also yes, i wont provide translation again this time  
> also also yes, the dream is very vague  
> also also also yes, body exploration a bit but nothing very graphic

* * *

You open your eyes. Blinking incredulously as you stand in your room. You don't really remember what happened, or what was going on. You glance at the bars on the window, smoke curling into sight. Hold on, you didn't have a barred window in your room. You were sure about that. 

The window disappears. But someone else appears on the cot in the corner of the room. You recognize them. It was _you_. 

You stare at _yourself_ , and _you_ stare back.

☜︎︎💣︎︎👌︎︎⚐︎︎👎︎︎✋︎︎💣︎︎☜︎︎☠︎︎❄︎︎

You tilt your head, nodding shortly back in greeting. 

_You_ mirror the head tilt, but don't nod back. The blank look in _your_ eyelights more than slightly uncomfortable but that's normal. You stop looking at _yourself_ and look around the room instead. It's changed again. Familiar yet so foreign.

✡︎⚐︎🕆︎ ☟︎✌︎✞︎☜︎ 👍︎☟︎✌︎☠︎☝︎☜︎👎︎📬︎ 

You glance back at _yourself_ , now sitting on a window bed, the window behind _you_ is empty. Void of anything but inky darkness. That wasn't right, but you can't do anything about it. It was on _your_ side of the room. You're not allowed on that side, _you_ never said that. You said that, you weren't allowed on _your_ side just as _you_ weren't allowed on your side. Not willingly at least.

But sometimes, _you_ could stand up and cross the border. The rules gone as soon as the circumstances were right... You tried hard to make sure the circumstances weren't right.

You look at your side, you don't have a window bed unfortunately. Damn _you_. 

Though thankfully you still have more things on your side rather than _your_ side. It's rather empty there, you'd be more empathetic to it if it weren't for the fact _you_ didn't like anything. At all. 

Aside from your brother of course, but _you_ weren't supposed to be with _your brother_.

That's something you can feel a bit more empathetic to _yourself_. You don't like being apart with your brother, but it was really for the best.

❄︎☟︎☜︎☼︎☜︎ ✋︎💧︎ 💧︎⚐︎💣︎☜︎❄︎☟︎✋︎☠︎☝︎ 👎︎✋︎☞︎☞︎☜︎☼︎☜︎☠︎❄︎📬︎

You look at _yourself_ with a questioning look, "what's different?" You finally ask, your voice reverberating ever so slightly. 

_You_ narrow _your_ eye sockets, blank eyelights finally shining as something flashes between you and _you_ \- right at the middle. Right at the border.

A screen, filled with dim blue words. Stats, story, information. Everything that made you, you. 

You stare at the screen, words flashing by, switching between languages that you knew. The words flew by, changing quickly as _you_ read.

You don't see anything wrong. But _you_ were right, there were some changes, new information, other things but it wasn't bad. You think.

👍︎☟︎✌︎☠︎☝︎☜︎ ✋︎💧︎ ☠︎⚐︎❄︎ ✋︎💣︎🏱︎⚐︎☼︎❄︎✌︎☠︎❄︎ ❄︎⚐︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎❄︎📬︎ 

_You_ decided, shine dulling to blankness once more as the screen disappeared and the border is all that divides you and _you_. "that's good i guess." You reply with a shrug, you never cared for the court. That was all _you_. Ever dedicated one, so obsessed with the session- though _you_ were not the only one.

 _Thump_.

Ah, speak of the devil...

You look behind _yourself_ and find **yourself**. There, behind _you_ , within the inky darkness outside the window. 

**You** looked strict and empty as always, summoned at the mention of the court. **You** looked expectant, _you_ look back at **yourself** and shake _your_ head. Disappointed and cowed, **you** fade back into the darkness, disappearing from the window. 

Good. 

You never really liked **yourself**. Unfortunately efficient in what **you** did and always listened to _you_ instead of you.

"was there a point to this?" You ask aloud, looking at _you_. "would've liked a normal dream instead of a meetin'." 

❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎❄︎ 💧︎☟︎⚐︎🕆︎☹︎👎︎ ☟︎✌︎✞︎☜︎ 👌︎☜︎☝︎✌︎☠︎📬︎

"you always think it should begin. it shouldn't. is this about the high lvs around? from the others? they're good skeletons, they shouldn't be prosecuted." You tell _yourself_ , annoyed at _your_ thoughts about the matter. You liked the new place with all the skeletons. Good skeletons. You know they're good skeletons, despite some of their circumstances. 

It was nice to be around skeletons again aside from your brother. 

❄︎☟︎☜︎✡︎ 💧︎☟︎⚐︎🕆︎☹︎👎︎ 🏱︎☼︎⚐︎✞︎☜︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✋︎☼︎ ✋︎☠︎☠︎⚐︎👍︎☜︎☠︎👍︎☜︎📬︎

_You_ replied, frown set and stubborn. "they don't have to prove anythin' they don't want to. you don't understand- you _never_ understand." You sigh, pressing your palms against your face. You really would have liked a dream instead of this. "enough. the court's not happening pal. leave it and let me _sleep_."

The door creaks open behind you as _you_ stay silent. "good." You turn on your heel, feet padding on the floor as you head towards the now opened door. "see ya."

❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎❄︎ 🕈︎✋︎☹︎☹︎ 👌︎☜︎☝︎✋︎☠︎ 💧︎⚐︎💣︎☜︎👎︎✌︎✡︎ ☜︎💣︎👌︎⚐︎👎︎✋︎💣︎☜︎☠︎❄︎📬︎ ✋︎❄︎ ✋︎💧︎ ✋︎☠︎☜︎✞︎✋︎❄︎✌︎👌︎☹︎☜︎📬︎ ✋︎❄︎ ✋︎💧︎ 🕈︎☟︎✌︎❄︎ 💣︎🕆︎💧︎❄︎ 👌︎☜︎ 👎︎⚐︎☠︎☜︎📬︎

You pause and glance back at _yourself_ , "yeah well- i'll be doin' my best to make sure that _doesn't_ happen. i actually like the place we ended up. i don't-" You took in a deep breath and grasp the handle of the door, "i don't want to ruin that."

📬︎📬︎📬︎

"later, judge." 

You step out the door and into the much needed dreamland that you wanted, leaving **_yourself_ **behind.

* * *

Morning comes slowly, the darkness of the night slowly, and beautifully, turning into daylight as the sun slowly rose up. 

Papyrus always tried to wake up just in time to see the sunrise. To watch the sky paint itself in purples, yellows, oranges and then eventually to bright blue. 

He would look at the sky, count the clouds in the sky and try to see how the weather is- though some mornings he couldn't watch the sunrise since it would be raining or unfortunately cloudy. But still, he always cherished every morning that he could see the sunrise, even if the day wouldn't necessarily be special or good.

It was his new morning routine in this universe. And it was a good routine.

And on some good mornings, his brother would be awake in time with him. On some good-ish mornings, his brother never slept. 

Papyrus was grateful to find that he was the first one awake that morning and that his brother was sleeping in his room. And so was their newest gue- well, housemate now. Or well, as far as Papyrus knew, Chine was still asleep within his room. He had pressed his skull against the door and heard nothing so he hoped that Chine was still asleep in these early hours.

Or maybe Chine would have liked to wake up in time to watch the sunrise as well.

He should ask later on.

But right now, he enjoyed his time on the porch, sitting on one of the outdoor chairs, breathing in the quiet and crisp morning air while carefully nursing a nice warm cup of coffee that helped awaken him as the sky lightened with the sun rising.

Papyrus really did love this newfound freedom he and his brother had for the past months. It's done so well for them both and for others. Hopefully it would do well for two new others.

He stayed on the porch until the sunrise finished, long after his cup was empty and the chill of morning started to subside for the normal heat of the day- it seemed like it would be a regular day, no rain clouds in sight but you could never know with mother nature's weather schedule. Papyrus certainly hoped that it would stay sunny today, Blue and the others were going to go shopping today weren't they? With Chine and Visor for the start of their much needed clothing?

Would it be too much if he offered to come with? Both brothers didn't seem to mind him and his brother's appearances... But then again, there was a reason why they rarely went out to densely populated areas like the mall. Their appearances were too frightening for the humans around them, monsters well. Papyrus with his crooked teeth that earned him his nickname- he didn't mind, not anymore, Crooks was a fine way to distinguish himself from the others- and his brother with his red eyelight and caved in skull.

The thought of his brother's hole soured his pleasant morning mood, it furthered a bit when his thoughts ultimately strayed to his new counterpart Visor. He had a similar, if not _worse_ caved in skull hole than his brother. Papyrus couldn't help but wonder on what happened, it would no doubt have been as similarly horrifying as to when his brother had faced... Undyne.

He liked this universe's Undyne much better than his own. Was Chine's version of Undyne a good monster? Or was she like his Undyne, cruel and truly monstrous? 

Papyrus really hoped that Chine's Undyne was like Classic's. 

With the sunrise over and his morning mood slightly soured, Papyrus retreated back into his cottage after one final look at the mansion. 

He must prepare breakfast for his brother and Chine, he felt his mood bettering as he thought on what to prepare for breakfast for all three of them. Would Chine like pancakes or waffles? Strawberry or blueberry? Chocolate syrup or simple maple? Oh the possibilities were endless and with how last night went, Papyrus was rather determined to make sure Chine ate a good amount good food. 

They were on the surface of a peaceful world, there would be no rations here! Just lovely home cooked meals and flavorful amazing food.

Past-starved monsters must simply stick together and provide for each other after all.

Oh! Maybe he should consider going with eggs, toast and bacon instead? A classic, lovely breakfast, perhaps add in some baked potatoes for flair and more nutrients...

* * *

Waking from a weird ass fucking dream always lead to you stumbling off your bed with a somewhat painful _thunk_ as your body collides with the floor, you never remember the dream itself, just that it was just flat out weird and probably disturbing and that you want to go back to dreamland and get a refund for a better dream but you don't want to move from the floor. 

"uughhhh," You groan against the carpeted floor, shifting against said floor as you instinctively try to go back to sleep on said floor. It was simply very comfy, and smelled clean.

...

 _Too_ clean.

Did your brother clean out your carpet? Why? What the fuck did he want? If he cleaned your carpet then he must have done something else--

_No wait. Wait wait wait wait **wait** -_

Scrambling to your feet, your breath hitches as instead of _your_ bedroom, you see _a_ bedroom. It lacks any of your personal items, all the work you've made in your years _isn't there_ and you're-

You look at your gloved hands, the white not-skin that entered said thick gloves, bones. Bones bones bones- you could see the actual radius and ulna of an arm. _Your_ arm. It wasn't supposed to be your arm but not it _was_.

Oh.

 _Oh_.

Yesterday slams back into your head like a fucking truck, memories of what had happened and the situation that you and your brother were in now.

For a brief moment, last night's panic attack threatens to overwhelm you.

_Smack!_

"ow!" You hissed, tenderly rubbing the cheek that you'd abruptly slapped. It _hurt_ , the type of hurt that you don't really get when you were dreaming which proved that this was no doubt and unfortunately rate. That and it helped snap you out of the restart of another panic attack. You definitely didn't want to end up crying again. 

You could do this, you could deal with _everything_ and make it work. 

You didn't really have a choice.

Might as well own it right?

As you rubbed your cheek, you notice just how malleable your face is despite being a skeleton. You glance over to the dresser mirror, grimacing at the brief flash of memory to last night- the burst of emotions that happened at the sight of Sans' face facing you despite the fact _you weren't Sans_. "okay. okay. you can do this." You reassure yourself, clenching your fists, glaring hard at your hands and resolutely took both gloves off. Tossing them on the bed and striding over to the dresser to face yourself.

If you couldn't look at yourself in the mirror then how the fuck were you going to do anything else in life?

Bracing yourself, you force yourself to face the reflection in the mirror.

Dim blue eyelights greet you from the glass, you frown as you notice the clear tear tracks underneath your sockets but ignore it to focus on the familiar scratches that decorated the face that was now yours. You've never had any facial scars before, and the scratches on your skull definitely counted as facial scars- what else could they be? You ignore the slight tremor in your body as you focus on how you looked like now.

Sans' face was ultimately fascinating to see in real life. Both your new face and the other AU Sans that would now surround you. 

You let your more nerdy side out as you observe your face, your skull, your hands, your _everything_ \- like how the shape of your skull wasn't typically like an anatomically correct human skull, it was more round-ish. Like the bones themselves weren't bones persay, but like muscle, skin, the bones were _flexible_ , demonstrated by how you pinched your own cheek and stretched it as far as you could before massaging it down, molding your face and watching with interest as the bone shifted underneath your hands like skin. But it was undeniably _bone_ though. Just, magic bones? Also with all the rubbing, you manage to erase the tear tracks on your face.

You hook a phalange and open your mouth, observing the way your teeth were covered by thin bone lips and were inside the skull instead of embedded or rooted at the jaw. The teeth themselves were deceptively flat when you smiled, but if you focused and opened your mouth you could see that they were actually sharper than they looked. And your tongue- it was no longer flesh and blood, it was a glowy dim blue tongue that shined with spit and drool. You found that you could also make it disappear- magic was _indescribable_ really.

And your eyes- well, eyelights in your sockets. You couldn't exactly see the inside of your own skull- there was nothing else but darkness behind the eyelights, it didn't seem like sclera. You really didn't have eyeballs, and after some hesitance, you found yourself poking a finger into the socket.

No pain, nothing- you just couldn't see with the finger in your socket. You could probably feel the back of your own skull if you shoved your hand deeper but you don't do that because as fascinating as that was, this was still kind of disturbing. You weren't ready to do something like that yet.

"would it be suspicious if i tried to learn more on what the fuck we are and how we are by the others." You muse aloud, shaking your head and blinking to let your vision return to normal. "maybe. probably have to find out another way... actually wait-" Your eyelights brighten as you remember something and scramble over to your clothes. 

You take the coat in hand and sat down on the bed, looking through the pockets- which were indeed _filled_ with items that belonged to Prosthesis Sans. You're in awe at them all really but you reluctantly set them all aside and ignore them in favor of finding...

"aha! gotcha!"

Victoriously, you held out the item that you had been looking for and a wide grin settling on your face. The item in question was actually a device, a thick-cog shaped and looking device. In all actuality, it seemed like a cog-shaped camera with a protruding lens at the center of the six-teethed cog. It was as thick as your arm and as big as your hand. 

You grinned at it, feeling inexplicably giddy as you held the amazing piece of technology in your bare hands. "oh fucking stars i never thought i'd actually manage to hold or even use this!" You fiddle with the device before pausing. "hold on. _how_ do you work? i mean- i know how to use you but like, _how_ do you _work_?" You question aloud as you look wide-eyed at the cog. You really want to dismantle it, see the innards because even though you _wrote_ about this thing you don't exactly know on how it was made and how it worked on a complete level. 

Unfortunately you only had one of these things.

Well, your brother had one of these too but, that was _his_ HolCog. 

Shaking your head and keeping in your disappointment, you instead turn it on. Pressing against a specific tooth of the cog, the lens of the HolCog brightening to signify that it was turning on, you flip the HolCog, seeing the screen on the back. "so cool." You whisper to yourself with a grin, watching the screen boot up. The text is dim blue, Prosthesis Sans' color, _your_ color.

There's a numeric password on the screen, thankfully you know what the password was. 

1-7-2-7-9-3-4. 

The HolCog accepts the passwords and opens and you're greeted with the cool blue screen of the HolCog. You immediately press another tooth of the cog and set it screen down on the bed, watching with glee as the lens flared and brightened and above the HolCog, a slightly flickering screen appeared. The contents of the screen was simple, a greyish background with dim blue files littered over the screen, and a few other icons.

Yeah, you and your brother were kind of loose but creative with the technology of your Prosthesis AU. The theme was mostly steampunk but like hell you both were giving up the chance to be _very_ creative with the technology. Like the Hologram-Cog. A device that was like a big phone slash small computer in Prosthesis AU but was capable of creating a hologram interface if one wanted, it wasn't perfect, it flickered from time to time but it was usable and _very cool_ so you weren't going to complain about something as awesome _as this_.

Your grin is so wide, your cheeks are started to hurt.

You reach out to interact with the hologram screen- only for your fingers to phase through the hologram without any affect.

You're briefly confused before you remember, "oh right my gloves, _duh_." You quickly look for your gloves, pausing briefly as you see a folded piece of paper. "is that..."

Taking the paper in hand, you unfold it and snort.

The paper in question was a Wanted Poster.

With Sans' face and name on it.

"right, he usually kept this... wonder if bro has one too." You hummed before folding the paper once more and tuck it aside before looking for your gloves once more. You put them on, facing the holographic screen of the HolCog once more. "alright, lets see whats in here." You knew some of the contents of the HolCog but you're very sure you don't know _everything_ in it.

There were indeed perks to being Prosthesis Sans.

* * *

"AH! GOOD MORNING BROTHER!" 

Sans yawned, smiling softly at his brother as he entered the comfy kitchen of their cottage. It wasn't as big as the kitchen in the mansion, of course not but it was certainly and thankfully big enough for Papyrus to stand tall with plenty of stretching room despite being so much taller than the others. Papyrus still kept his figure careful and small though, his brother was a gentle giant. 

The best gentle giant.

Was he bias? Probably.

Was he wrong though? Probably not.

"mornin' paps." He greeted back tiredly, climbing on to a stool and letting out a soft noise when Papyrus wordlessly slid him a steamy cup of coffee. "paps you're the greatest, thanks bro." Papyrus' beam was bright, but thankfully Sans was ready with a cup of coffee. Said cup of coffee was of course, thanks to his brother so yeah. He had the best brother. 

"I SEE THAT YOU HAVE SLEPT LAST NIGHT BROTHER, HOW WAS IT?" Papyrus asked as he busied himself in the kitchen, Sans watched him go- he wondered on what his brother was going to make, though he didn't have to wonder anymore as he sees Papyrus getting some eggs and strips of bacon from the fridge. 

"it was fine paps. slept _like the dead_." The narrowed socket look he got from his brother made him chuckle into his coffee cup. "what 'bout you paps? you sleep fine?"

Papyrus dropped the look to smile, "I SLEPT QUITE WELL! I HAD A RATHER PLEASANT DREAM, THOUGH I DO NOT REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS UNFORTUNATELY." He sighed, that was good. They both hadn't had a nightmare in a while, that was always good. "DO- Do You Think Chine Slept Fine As Well?" Papyrus abruptly asked, his tone quieting a bit.

Sans paused as he thought back to the newest skeleton that was now living in their cottage. "i... don't know bro." He admitted truthfully because how would they know? If Chine had any nightmares last night, the skeleton had managed to keep it to himself rather than alert them both during the night. Which was... he didn't know if it was for the better or for the worse. As far as Sans could tell, Chine had 'slept' peacefully in his room, he hadn't heard a peep from the skeleton, but then again he'd just woken up and went straight towards the kitchen.

"i guess we can ask and see when he comes down?" He questioned as he looked back to his brother.

Papyrus looked hesitant but nodded back, "I SUPPOSE." He obviously hoped that Chine had slept fine last night, which Sans kind of hoped as well. Stars knows that the both of them hadn't slept all that well during the first few days in this universe. "ACTUALLY, BROTHER CAN YOU GO UP AND CHECK ON HIM? PERHAPS WAKE HIM UP IN TIME FOR BREAKFAST?"

Sans almost choked on his coffee, "uh what."

"AFTER YOU FINISH YOUR COFFEE OF COURSE, MAYHAPS YOU CAN EITHER CHECK OR WAKE CHINE UP? IT WON'T BE LONG UNTIL BREAKFAST IS DONE, AND I WOULD LIKE TO EAT TOGETHER. HOWEVER IF HE DOESN'T WANT TO SHARE BREAKFAST THIS MORNING THEN IT'S FINE, I WILL SIMPLY STORE SOME BREAKFAST FOR HIM LATER ON WHEN HE FEELS LIKE EATING." There was a hopeful tone to his brother's voice that Sans really couldn't deny, and besides, Sans actually wanted to eat alongside Chine as well.

They had to make sure that Chine was eating well of course. 

Sans nodded in the end, "yeah sure. i'll go do that- just finished my cup anyway." He got off the stool and set the cup in the sink, "i'll be back bro."

Papyrus waved a spatula at him as he left before continuing on to creating breakfast for all three of them. Sans almost couldn't wait to come back towards an abundant breakfast- he and Papyrus ate a lot, with the amount of food they had now why not? They could eat all they want, of course they were still rational enough to make sure they would never run out of food and such. Which was why they had adopted a fair amount of egg-laying chickens, created a nice little farm behind their cottage and was always hyper-aware to how much food they had in the cottage. Papyrus took to taking care of the chickens and the farm, but Sans helped out from time to time, he even made sure they had a good shipment and source of animal meat for not only them but to the skeletal group as a whole. 

It didn't take long for Sans to arrive at Chine's new bedroom door, Sans- well, _Axe_ , hesitated before the door, quietly pressing the side of his skull to the door to hear inside.

Hm... Nothing? Was Chine still asleep? 

The soundproofing between the rooms weren't that bad, but it was still thin enough that they'd be able to hear a loud scream from the other end of the house. 

Axe leaned away and shook his head, no point in listening in like a creep, he had to knock. 

_Knock knock knock_

Which he did, his knocks were firm and loud- but not too loud. If anything it could just jostle someone out of their sleep, unless they were a heavy sleeper. "chine? you up bud? it's me, axe." He called out, loud enough to be heard through the door. "you still asleep?" 

For an awkward moment, Axe heard nothing from behind the door and for the moment, he wondered if he should knock again but a bit louder this time so that Chine could wake up. 

He didn't have to though as the door suddenly opened wide. 

The first thing that Axe notices is that Chine wasn't dressed in the clothing he had yesterday- which made sense since he no doubt changed out of them and into the clothes that Blue and Red had offered before. Chine looked nice in casual clothing, more relaxed. Also a bit smaller, which also made sense since those clothes seemed a bit bulky on him, his body type wasn't as small as Black or Blue's but it wasn't like Classic's or Red or far from Axe's body type himself. He seemed more like Hop's body type underneath the clothing, maybe more or less slimmer. 

The second thing that Axe notices soon afterwards is the fact that Chine's neck and the peeking bones from the shirt he was wearing weren't bone white. They were a curious metallic bronze-gold color. _oh_ , Axe thought to himself, unable to look away from the somewhat shiny clavicle and top sternum that was peaking from the neckline of the shirt. _my theory was right and kinda wrong_. 

It wasn't just Chine's back that was artificial, it was probably his spine _and_ ribcage.

"mornin' axe." Chine greeted with a surprisingly happy and bright smile, snapping Axe out of his thoughts and forcing him to look at him straight in the sockets. "i- uh- oh wait, shit _shit-_ " It finally seemed to dawn to Chine that his neck was exposed, hand flying to cover his neck and slight panic entering his eyelights. 

Axe opened his mouth, to reassure him or something only to be interrupted by Chine slamming the door shut. The slam made Axe flinch back, but also let him think more on the situation at hand as Chine seemed to panic behind the door, most definitely looking for his scarf. 

Chine's spine and ribcage were artificially made. Or at least, the top of his spine and ribcage were. Axe wasn't really sure, he couldn't really confirm the fact that Chine's _entire_ spine _and_ ribcage were made of metal, not unless he asked the other or just by chance found out in an unconventional way of seeing Chine shirtless.

The very thought had Axe's face coloring, _nope_ \- he tried to shove the thought away and thankfully his head focuses on some other troubling thoughtline instead. Less embarrassing but definitely still troubling because Chine had _metal body parts_.

And those metal body parts were something _essential_ towards them skeletons, the neck especially. At some point, Chine had been damaged enough or experienced something that had Chine either covering his neck with metal or _replacing it entirely_. And Axe was being generous in thinking that it was only Chine's neck and upper spine being replaced here, if it was indeed the _entire_ spine and ribcage...

Terror and anger curled in the bottom of Axe's stomach as he thought more about it. It wasn't aimed at Chine of course, it couldn't possibly be aimed at Chine but at whoever was the _cause_ of Chine's unfortunate prosthetic. 

Whatever happened should have been _fatal_ to the poor skeleton and no doubt traumatic. Somehow, someway, Chine had survived but the reminder of what happened would forever be on his body, just like Axe's caved in skull, hell just like _Visor's_ caved in skull.

The door opened once more, less wide than before and Axe forcefully shoved the anger and terror away like the embarrassing thought of shirtless Chine ~~_dammit_ ~~in favor of looking back towards the now more subdued skeleton before him. Chine slipped from his room, closing the door behind him and looking anywhere else than Axe but ultimately, his scarf was once again wrapped securely around his neck, hiding the metal underneath.

"so uh..." Chine clearly wanted to know why Axe was here, and didn't want to talk about what happened.

Axe offered him an easy going smile, "morning chine." If Chine didn't want to talk about what happened, then they wouldn't talk about what happened, "my bro's in the kitchen making breakfast. he wanted me up to see if you were awake, or like, wake ya up for breakfast if you were still asleep." There was visible relief on Chine's face as he finally looked at Axe himself instead of anywhere else.

And the smile that Chine gave him had Axe smiling back. "ah, that makes sense. what's he making? no wait don't tell me, i'll be surprised when we get there." He said, stepping away from the door. "i can already tell it's gonna be delicious no matter what it is."

Axe chuckled, nodding as together, they went downstairs towards the kitchen where Papyrus was. "damn right it's gonna be delicious."

It was going to be different, having a new housemate with them but Chine was someone he could see himself and his brother getting along with. It helped that Chine was a nice type of skeleton, even if he had his issues with his brothers for some reason, though no doubt that would be fixed eventually. 

Axe's thoughts went back to the exposed metal bones, complicated feelings bubbling over the matter. He calms himself down over it, he couldn't do anything about it and it was clear that Chine didn't want to talk about it so they wouldn't. Axe wouldn't even tell anyone else until Chine gave him his permission. 

One day though, he somewhat hoped that Chine would trust him and his brother over what happened and more on his past. 

And thinking about it, the metallic bones had looked kind of nice, Axe thinks that some of the cervical neck vertebrae had some carvings on them, he wasn't too sure.

That didn't really matter right now though, what mattered is that this morning would be the first morning he and his brother would eat with their new housemate in their cottage.

* * *

You honestly hadn't meant to show Axe your neck.

His knock had come out of nowhere while you were exploring and figuring out on how to use the HolCog that you hadn't thought straight, hyped on excitement over using the thing for yourself- it was one thing to write about it and really another to actually use it. But you knew the basics and it seemed that muscle memory really did somehow transfer as you used it without much of a problem.

You found what you'd mostly expected from Sans' files on the device, almost all of the files were encrypted and you really couldn't connect the HolCog to anywhere, it wasn't really compatible to the networks around- you had to snort when you found a network called 'THE BONE ZONE'. Someone, most likely Stretch or maybe Red, Classic or even Mutt, must have named the network that.

The HolCog couldn't connect to the internet here, so it was virtually useless for the moment aside from being an information goldmine. You'd have to do something about that, somehow make a way it would be compatible, maybe create a program to make it a bit more compatible or something? You almost couldn't wait.

And then as you were about to delve even deeper into the HolCog, the door knocked which made you jump a bit on the bed. 

" _chine? you up bud? it's me, axe._ "

It was Axe! 

Grinning, you got to your feet but a thought in your head made you pause a bit- you couldn't just open the door and let Axe see the floating hologram of information on the bed, he'd be curious and you weren't ready to really show it to anyone else yet. But instead of turning it off, you instead chose to cover the lens with something to stop the hologram projection and that something ended up being your scarf. 

You didn't realize what you'd just did until you after you opened the door, greeted Axe and watch him look down below your face then up at you with wide sockets.

_Oh shit._

Without another thought, you ended up slamming the door in Axe's face and scrambling back towards the bed for your scarf.

It took more than a few moments for you to calm your hammering chest- SOUL? As you quickly tugged the scarf around your neck, almost chocking yourself with how fast you did it. The hologram from the HolCog back in the air as you collapse on your knees by the bed. 

That was-

Fuck.

Axe knew.

Axe _knew_.

He knew now and-

No, he didn't _know_ _**exactly**_.

He didn't know everything.

You were fine.

Things were fine.

Everything was _fine._

With that in mind, you finally stand up, _actually_ turn off the HolCog properly instead of covering the lens and head back towards the door. Hoping for the best.

You slip out the door to face Axe.

And by face Axe you mean physically have your body facing him but your gaze just, ending up anywhere else _but_ his face.

 _he was going to ask he was going to ask about your neck you're not ready **you're not ready**_ -

By some miracle, Axe doesn't ask. Instead smiling at you like you hadn't revealed something very intriguing about your body that anyone else would just _ask_ forthright and mention about Papyrus and breakfast.

You latch on to it with great relief, your fondness over Axe growing even more because of it.

Also, breakfast! By Horrortale Papyrus! Like hell you weren't going to eat anything the skeleton cooked- breakfast here you come! With Axe!

As you head down the stairs with Axe, laughing as he told you a rather morbid joke, _you love morbid jokes though so it's fine_ , you wonder if your brother is doing okay. He would have to wake up without his visor right?

Hopefully, things would be fine with him in the mansion.

After all, things were fine here in the cottage despite the rough bump back there...

Oh hey! Papyru-Crooks, made a shit ton of eggs, bacon, toast and ooo, juice!

Everything else can wait a bit, the information on your new actual for real HolCog that held a lot of things from the Prosthesis AU, your brother- everything else can wait for just a little bit. You had a breakfast to consume, made by the greatest tall skeleton boi; Horrortale Papyrus! He looked great in that white apron heh.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its shorter than the last chapter  
> but its still over 5k and just 200 words short to being 6k so im happy with how it turned out  
> let me know on what you think  
> i like reading your comments it fills me with determination ~~heh~~


	10. Good Morning Mansion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ive posted the second chapter of Monsters In The Forest go check it out if you want to

* * *

You open your eyes. Blinking incredulously as you stand in your room. You don't really remember what happened, or what was going on. You glance at the bars on the window, smoke curling into sight. No, wait, you didn't have a barred window in your room. At least, you think so.

The window disappears. But someone else appears on the cot in the corner of the room. You recognize them. It was _you_. 

You stare at _yourself_ , and _you_ stare back.

☜︎︎💣︎︎👌︎︎⚐︎︎👎︎︎✋︎︎💣︎︎☜︎︎☠︎︎❄︎︎

You sigh and nod back in greeting, feeling more tired as you look at _yourself_.

 _You_ nod back tersely, face amicable and deceptively pleasant if it weren't for the blank look in _your_ socket. You look past _yourself_ and look around the room instead. It's changed again. Familiar but very foreign for whatever reason that escapes you.

💧︎⚐︎💣︎☜︎❄︎☟︎✋︎☠︎☝︎ ✋︎💧︎ 👎︎✋︎☞︎☞︎☜︎☼︎☜︎☠︎❄︎📬︎

Your gaze comes back to _yourself_ , now sitting on a simple bed but you look down towards underneath it. Empty black darkness greets you from underneath the bed. Ah, you don't like that but that's hardly something you can do something about it. It was on _your_ side of the room, _your_ bed. You're not exactly willing to cross the room towards _you_ and the bed, you have rules imposed for the sake of it. You stay away from _you_ , the bed, and the border.

Though should the rules let it or circumstances were... _right_ , _you_ could simply stand up and cross that border. You did your best to make sure the circumstances were blatantly wrong and not possible. 

The fact you're isolating _yourself_ on that side of the border aside, it wasn't that bad over there. A few items were there, but not like the items you had in more numerous regards- those items were rather bland, more suited for specific things that _you_ were skilled in. _You_ weren't lonely on _your_ side. Though you know _you_ would like to be with _your_ brother. 

The sentiment is shared, you'd like your brother as well but it simply could not be done.

Not without initiating the session.

✡︎⚐︎🕆︎ ☟︎✌︎✞︎☜︎ 👍︎☟︎✌︎☠︎☝︎☜︎👎︎ ✌︎ 👌︎✋︎❄︎ 💣︎✡︎ ☜︎💣︎👌︎⚐︎👎︎✋︎💣︎☜︎☠︎❄︎📬︎

"CHANGED? I FEEL QUITE THE SAME." You tell _yourself_ , voice a slight echo. Different from _your_ voice, there was no echo on _your_ side of the room. Never was. 

_You_ hummed, pleasant facade adapting to a look of false frustration and suspicion. The blank look in _your_ socket is still there though. Raising _your_ hand, _your_ eyes finally flare and shine for a brief moment. In any other situation you'd be wary of that, but all _you're_ doing was summoning the screen that appeared at the border.

A screen that was filled with faint orange words. Information, story, statistics. It told everything about you. It was everything about you. Everything that made you, you.

❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👎︎✋︎☞︎☞︎☜︎☼︎☜︎☠︎👍︎☜︎ ✋︎💧︎ ☠︎⚐︎❄︎ ✋︎💣︎🏱︎⚐︎☼︎❄︎✌︎☠︎❄︎ ❄︎⚐︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎❄︎ 💧︎☜︎💧︎💧︎✋︎⚐︎☠︎ ✋︎❄︎💧︎☜︎☹︎☞︎📬︎📬︎📬︎ 👌︎🕆︎❄︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎ 👍︎✌︎💧︎☜︎ ☟︎✌︎💧︎ 💧︎☟︎✋︎☞︎❄︎☜︎👎︎ ✌︎☠︎👎︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎ 🏱︎☜︎☠︎✌︎☠︎👍︎☜︎ ☟︎✌︎💧︎ 👌︎☜︎☜︎☠︎ ✌︎👎︎👎︎☜︎👎︎📬︎ 💧︎⚐︎ 💣︎🕆︎👍︎☟︎ 💧︎✋︎☠︎ ☞︎⚐︎☼︎ 💧︎🕆︎👍︎☟︎ ☹︎✋︎❄︎❄︎☹︎☜︎ 👍︎☟︎✌︎☠︎☝︎☜︎📬︎

_You_ say with shining sockets, a rather cruel smile on _your_ face. A genuine one. 

It would have been frightening if it weren't for the fact you were used to it. And besides, the cruel smile doesn't stay cruel for long. It twists into confusion and thoughtfulness as the screen disappears, dismissed by _yourself_.

⚐︎☼︎ ✋︎💧︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👎︎✋︎☞︎☞︎☜︎☼︎☜︎☠︎👍︎☜︎ 💣︎⚐︎☼︎☜︎ ✋︎💣︎🏱︎⚐︎☼︎❄︎✌︎☠︎❄︎ ❄︎⚐︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎ 👍︎✌︎💧︎☜︎✍︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎ ✋︎☠︎☠︎⚐︎👍︎☜︎☠︎👍︎☜︎ 💣︎✌︎✡︎ 👌︎☜︎ 🏱︎☼︎⚐︎✞︎☜︎☠︎ 🕈︎✋︎❄︎☟︎ ❄︎☟︎✋︎💧︎📬︎ ⚐︎☼︎ 🏱︎☜︎☼︎☟︎✌︎🏱︎💧︎ ☠︎⚐︎❄︎📬︎

You frown and sigh, "Does It Matter? The Court Hasn't Even Begun, And My Case Has Long Been Decided Long Ago." You reply softly, catching _your_ attention and _your_ sockets flare again before ultimately dulling once more. "My Time Doesn't Matter, It Doesn't Change My Sentence. It Doesn't Change What Happened."

 _You_ nodded, face once more deceptively pleasant. Of course if there was one thing you could all agree on, was _**that**_. 

👍︎⚐︎☼︎☼︎☜︎👍︎❄︎📬︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎ 💧︎☜︎☠︎❄︎☜︎☠︎👍︎☜︎ ☟︎✌︎💧︎ ☠︎⚐︎❄︎ 👍︎☟︎✌︎☠︎☝︎☜︎👎︎📬︎ 

A low rumble came from underneath the bed, catching both of your attention. 

You grimace, _your_ smile becomes a bit more genuine and a tad more cruel, and **you** claw at the floorboards, leaving marks in **your** wake as **you** snarl.

"BEHAVE **YOURSELF** , NOTHING IMPORTANT HAS HAPPENED." You snap at **yourself** staring at the manic orange eyelights that were showing from darkness of the bed, **your** arms strain against the shackles that bind **you**. 

_You_ seemed amused and shift on the bed. _Your_ foot collides hard against **your** hand, **you** howl in pain but retreat into the darkness.

👌︎☜︎☟︎✌︎✞︎☜︎ 

_You_ say, an echoing whine and reluctant noise comes from the bed but **you** temporarily disappear back into the depths of the darkness, cowed and chastised. 

You grimace. You've never really liked **yourself** but even _your_ treatment over **you** was rather harsh by your standards. Though that was hypocritical to say wasn't it? 

Still, **you** were good at what **you** did, listening to no one but _yourself_ and being terribly efficient in what **you** were created to do.

"Now That This Pointless Meeting Is Over, I Will Now Go Dream." You exclaim to _yourself_ as you turn towards the closed door behind you.

🕈︎☜︎ 💧︎☟︎⚐︎🕆︎☹︎👎︎ ☟︎✌︎✞︎☜︎ 💧︎❄︎✌︎☼︎❄︎☜︎👎︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎❄︎📬︎ 💧︎⚐︎ 💣︎✌︎☠︎✡︎ 👍︎☼︎✋︎💣︎✋︎☠︎✌︎☹︎ 💧︎✋︎☠︎☠︎☜︎☼︎💧︎ ✋︎☠︎ ⚐︎☠︎☜︎ 🏱︎☹︎✌︎👍︎☜︎📬︎

You pause and whirl back to give _yourself_ a glare. "DO NOT CALL OUR NEW ACQUAINTANCES THOSE. THEY HAVE BEEN NOTHING BUT COURTEOUS TO US SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THIS NONSENSE!" You can deal with _you_ talking about you, but the others shouldn't have to deal with _you_. 

❄︎☟︎✌︎❄︎ 👎︎⚐︎☜︎💧︎ ☠︎⚐︎❄︎ 👍︎☟︎✌︎☠︎☝︎☜︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✋︎☼︎ ☹︎⚐︎✞︎☜︎📪︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✡︎ 💣︎🕆︎💧︎❄︎ ☞︎✌︎👍︎☜︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎❄︎ ✌︎☠︎👎︎ 👌︎☜︎ ☺︎🕆︎👎︎☝︎☜︎👎︎📬︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✋︎☼︎ 👍︎✌︎💧︎☜︎💧︎ 💣︎✌︎✡︎ 👌︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎💣︎🏱︎☹︎✋︎👍︎✌︎❄︎☜︎👎︎ 👌︎🕆︎❄︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✡︎ 💣︎🕆︎💧︎❄︎ ☼︎☜︎🏱︎☜︎☠︎❄︎ ✌︎☠︎👎︎ ☞︎☜︎☜︎☹︎ 🏱︎☜︎☠︎✋︎❄︎☜︎☠︎👍︎☜︎📬︎

_You_ reply smoothly with the same amicable, pleasant _fake_ smile that _you_ usually wear. You clench your fists and growl. "THEY DO NOT NEED TO BE JUDGED, NOT BY YOU, NOT BY OUR BROTHER AND CERTAINLY NOT BY THE BOTH OF _**US**_." You hiss, enraged and offended on the behalf of the others. "THEY ARE GOOD SKELETONS, AND THOUGH THEIR LVS ARE HIGH THEY HAD THEIR REASONS, THEY ARE GOOD SKELETONS THAT DO NOT DESERVE PROSECUTION!"

 _You_ tilt your head, smile still there but faker and stiff. 

🏱︎☜︎☼︎☟︎✌︎🏱︎💧︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎☟︎✌︎☠︎☝︎☜︎ ✋︎💧︎ ✋︎💣︎🏱︎⚐︎☼︎❄︎✌︎☠︎❄︎📬︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎ ✞︎✋︎☜︎🕈︎ ☟︎✌︎💧︎ 👌︎☜︎☜︎☠︎ 👍︎☹︎⚐︎🕆︎👎︎☜︎👎︎ 🕈︎☟︎☜︎☠︎ ✋︎❄︎ 💧︎☟︎⚐︎🕆︎☹︎👎︎ 👌︎☜︎ ✋︎💣︎🏱︎✌︎☼︎❄︎✋︎✌︎☹︎📬︎ ✋︎☞︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✡︎ 👎︎⚐︎ ☠︎⚐︎❄︎ 👎︎☜︎💧︎☜︎☼︎✞︎☜︎ 🏱︎☼︎⚐︎💧︎☜︎👍︎🕆︎❄︎✋︎⚐︎☠︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎☠︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✡︎ 💧︎☟︎⚐︎🕆︎☹︎👎︎ 🏱︎☼︎⚐︎✞︎☜︎ 💧︎⚐︎📬︎ 

Your teeth grit and ground together, "THEY DON'T HAVE TO PROVE _SHIT_ \- THE COURT WILL NEVER BEGIN FOR THEM, THEY DO NOT HAVE CASES FOR YOU BUT MAYBE YOU ARE RIGHT ABOUT ONE THING. THE CHANGE IS IMPORTANT, BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER AT THE MOMENT. AND IMPARTIAL? THAT'S A GAMBLE EVERY FUCKING TIME." You seethe whirling back towards the door, stalking towards it and grasping the doorknob.

👎︎☜︎☹︎✌︎✡︎ ✌︎☹︎☹︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎ 🕈︎✌︎☠︎❄︎ ☜︎💣︎👌︎⚐︎👎︎✋︎💣︎☜︎☠︎❄︎📬︎ 👌︎🕆︎❄︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎ 👍︎⚐︎🕆︎☼︎❄︎ 💧︎☜︎💧︎💧︎✋︎⚐︎☠︎ 🕈︎✋︎☹︎☹︎ ✋︎☠︎☜︎✞︎✋︎❄︎✌︎👌︎☹︎✡︎ 👌︎☜︎☝︎✋︎☠︎📬︎ ✋︎❄︎ ✌︎☹︎🕈︎✌︎✡︎💧︎ 🕈︎✋︎☹︎☹︎📬︎ ✡︎⚐︎🕆︎ 🕈︎✋︎☹︎☹︎ ☠︎⚐︎❄︎ 👌︎☜︎ ✌︎👌︎☹︎☜︎ ❄︎⚐︎ 😐︎☜︎☜︎🏱︎ ❄︎☟︎☜︎✋︎☼︎ 👍︎✌︎💧︎☜︎💧︎ ✌︎🕈︎✌︎✡︎ ☞︎☼︎⚐︎💣︎ 🕆︎💧︎ ☞︎⚐︎☼︎☜︎✞︎☜︎☼︎📬︎

You hold the doorknob tightly, and despite how much you want to deny _your_ words, you know _you_ speak the unfortunate truth... "But I Will Still Fucking Try. They Don't Deserve The Bullshit Of The Court Session." You turn the doorknob, forcing the door open. "AND EVEN IF THE SESSION STARTED- MY BROTHER AND I WILL THINK OF SOMETHING. WE'VE CHANGED AFTER ALL. THERE ARE JUST SOME THINGS YOU CANNOT ACCOUNT FOR JURY." 

You take one step into dreamland.

📬︎📬︎📬︎

"YOU WILL SEE THAT AND FIND IT OUT FOR YOURSELF."

You leave _**yourself**_ behind, onward towards sleep and dreams and much needed reprieve.

* * *

Morning comes somewhat slowly, the darkness of night retreating along with its stars and prettily, turning into daylight as the sun slowly rose up. 

Being alternate versions of each other, each skeleton had different yet similar morning routines. 

The there was a bit more surprise to a fact was that some of the skeletons were _not_ morning people whatsoever. Specifically speaking, Green, Noir, Mutt _and_ Blue were these specific skeletons. Yes, Blue was not a morning person, he hated being woken up without reason early in the morning for all the energy he exuded the rest of the day. Though he still wakes up early in the morning on his own accord, most other things otherwise than that gets him annoyed to borderline angry.

Something Green, Noir and Mutt sympathized and understood personally well.

At any rate though, it was usually the more energetic brothers who were up early in the morning with the some exceptions of certain skeletons staying up all night on some nights. Hopefully though, most of the skeletons in the mansion managed to get to sleep for more than a few hours.

"Good Morning Blue." Pyrus greeted softly towards the shorter skeleton as he stumbled into the kitchen with a rough grumble. Pyrus was typically the first one to use the kitchen during this time of the morning, and had developed the habit of preparing certain things for certain skeletons; i.e. Blue and his sweetened coffee.

Blue clutched the bright blue coffee mug with a vengeance, Pyrus hummed as Blue chugged the whole steaming cup- it was thankfully not that hot, though Pyrus knew that it didn't matter as long as the coffee itself wasn't cold, he had panicked once when Blue drank freshly hot coffee in one long slurp. "Thanks Pyrus." Blue mumbled back after a satisfied sigh.

Already he could feel the sugary sweetness of the coffee helping him wake up and get more accommodated into his usual amazing and energetic self. Pyrus beamed, smiling happily, "You Know It Isn't A Problem Blue- Would You Like A Second Cup?" He offered, nudging both the sugar and cream containers as well as the coffee pitcher towards him. 

" _Yes._ " Pyrus couldn't help the chuckle that slipped out of his mouth at the stressed out confirmation from Blue who quickly snatched both containers and then the pitcher so he could refill his mug. "You Are Truly Great Papyrus." 

Pyrus naturally preened after the praise, "Why Thank You, You Are Quite Magnificent Yourself Sans." Blue's lips quirked upward into a bright grin, they shared a giggle before a third skeleton trudged into the kitchen. "Ah! Noir! Good Morning!" He exclaimed, softly since any louder would no doubt irk the sharper version of himself. 

" _Shut Up You Cream Puff Imitation._ " Noir growled back with a huff, it used to be intimidating and somewhat insulting but now Pyrus smiled at the greeting back as he handed Noir his empty black coffee mug. Noir liked pouring himself coffee, something he did after snatching the pitcher from Blue's side- Noir took the coffee as it was, plain and black. "I Feel... Better. Thank You." He finally says after a few long sips of his first cup, unlike Blue's first sip which was just him chugging the entire cup in one go.

"Your Welcome." And unsaid apology accepted. 

Blue giggled at the side, simply smiling at Noir's obvious annoyance to him. "I Suppose No One Else Is Awake Yet." He hummed, enjoying and nursing his cup. 

Noir scoffed, "Obviously." He huffs into his coffee, taking in its scent as he sipped the hot liquid that was helping him wake up. 

Around this time, which was about 5 am for them, they were the first three skeletons that were typically awake in the mansion with the exceptions of some unfortunate skeletons that stayed up the whole night. Black, Bones, Green and Tango woke up an hour or so later than them, still early risers but not on the level the three of them were. "Hmm." Pyrus hummed thoughtfully as he looked out of the window, the sunset would come soon and he was looking forward towards it, so were Blue and Noir- even if Noir wouldn't truly admit it.

"What Is It Pyrus?" Blue questioned, glancing over to the thoughtful skeleton.

"I Was Simply Thinking Is All..." Pyrus trailed off, looking up towards the ceiling with a mildly curious look.

Noir growled at him, "SPIT IT OUT ALREADY!" He exclaimed, the coffee waking him up enough to his usual state of loudness. 

"Oh Calm Yourself Noir," Pyrus reprimanded him, "I Was Simply Thinking On What Time Visor Will Wake Up At. He Is A Different Version Of Us After All, Perhaps He Will Wake Up Around The Same Time As Tango, Bones, Green And Black?" He questioned, making both Blue and Noir think.

Though, Blue was a bit happy that Pyrus considered him a different version of him despite actually being a seemingly 'swapped' version of their respective brothers. "Maybe, Or Maybe He Is Already Awake But Preferring To Stay In His Room Until It's Later On?" He proposed back.

"We Won't Actually Know Without Finding Out Ourselves." Noir gruffed at them, "Next Time You See Him You Can Go And Ask." 

Fair enough.

Blue and Pyrus debated on checking on Visor himself in his room, to see if he was awake already but then that would risk actually waking him up if he was still asleep. They decided to just see when Visor woke up and entered the kitchen. 

The time for the sun to rise was coming so they moved on outside the kitchen and out to the outer porch of the mansion. Letting the crisp morning atmosphere into the building and inhaling the lovely cold air that came with it. It certainly helped keep them awake even without the morning coffee. 

The three skeletons got ready as the sky slowly began to change from the night sky into the beautiful early morning. 

"I Don't Think I Will Ever Get Tired Of This." Blue breathed, looking over the morning sky and the beautiful sunrise. 

Noir silently nodded. Even for someone as wondrously terrible as he, he would never get over one of the truly beautiful spectacles on the surface. 

Pyrus 'Nyeh'd' softly in agreement, "Not Any Of Us Will Ever Will." He said, sounding very confident in his words. And why wouldn't he be confident? He was merely speaking the truth. They'd spent most of their lives sealed underground, the magnificence of the sky on the surface will never lose its wonder to them. Even Skull and Bones would agree no doubt despite not being sealed underneath the ground. They had great tastes after all.

The three of them basked in the glory of the sunrise, happily enjoying the peace and quiet of the early morning. 

Though, Pyrus was the first one to notice the figure coming from the side of the back porch. "Nyeh?" His surprise caught the attention of Noir and Blue. "Is That..." He trailed off as none other than Visor himself came upon the porch, looking just as surprised as them to see them. 

"Pyrus, Blue, Noir. Good Morning." Visor greeted with a soft voice paired with a smile as he climbed up the short steps up on the porch. He was already dressed in his usual clothes yesterday, however he had forgone his belt, his jacket. as well as the leather harness from underneath, though he was still wearing his gloves and gauntlets strangely enough, however no one commented on it.

"MWEH! VISOR! GOOD MORNING! IT IS BOTH RATHER NICE AND SURPRISING TO SEE YOU UP THIS EARLY!" Blue exclaimed, enthusiasm set once more to its usual setting; which was the max setting. "WHEN DID YOU WAKE UP?" 

Visor chuckled, "I Woke Up Rather Early, Around Four This Morning. When I Saw The Time I Waited A Bit Inside But Couldn't Resist Exploring The Grounds, You See Usually I Go For A Morning Walk After I Wake Up So I Wanted To See If I Could Find A Path For Myself For Incoming Mornings." He explained as he _stretched_ -

_pop_

All three skeletons jolted as the fourth let out a weirdly satisfied grown, "SHAMELESS!" Noir snapped, face aflame as Visor rolled his shoulders and gave them a strange look. 

"Excuse Me?" He questioned cluelessly, it was Blue's mumbled 'Oh Not Again' that seemed to remind Visor of something. "Oh. OH! MY APOLOGIES YOU THREE, I FORGOT ABOUT THAT PROMISE- I'M REALLY SORRY BLUE, I DIDN'T MEAN TO-" He started looking guilty and unashamed for his actions.

Blue quickly waved it off, "I-IT'S FINE VISOR! YOU DIDN'T MEAN TO UM, STRETCH THAT FAR? OR HAVE THE POP BE SO LOUD? IT'S REALLY FINE!" 

Well this was one way to start the morning.

* * *

Waking up to darkness wasn't that uncommon for you.

Waking up to darkness that couldn't be dispelled _was_ uncommon for you.

You were the type of person to wake up almost immediately, if a bit groggily. You were quite groggy though, no doubt because of an emotional outburst last night, either that or you were _really_ tired last night...

You shift on your bed, groaning as you open... your...

You can't feel your face. It's dark and you can't feel your face.

You can't see and can't feel your fucking face.

"WHA-" Your hand flies up to your face only to flinch back when your palm got in contact with something semi-sharp on your face. "W-WHAT THE-" Tentatively, you touch your face. It feels... slimmer, and somewhat different from your usual skin? Your fingers climb higher until you feel the semi-sharp surface and- 

Everything comes back and a rattling wheeze escapes your mouth.

Yesterday... was real? It wasn't a- a bizarre realistic dream that you somehow conjured? You were... 

You clutch the bedsheets, panting slightly. You can't- you still can't _see_ where- 

_Besides you on your pillow._

Your brother _promised_ , he wouldn't- 

Quickly, you feel out the bed for your visor. For the sole one thing that could help you see once more. Thankfully it doesn't take long and you have it firm in your hands, "Oh Thank Fuck." You sigh before quickly putting the visor on, securing it to the clasps on the side of your head. 

Immediately, you can feel something tethering to your SOUL as your vision flickers and symbols flash in your 'sight'.

You hold your breath.

It's... Loading...

...

You can _see_.

Near-hysterical laughter bubbles from your mouth. You can _see_ \- it's a different kind of vision that you grew up with. To be honest, now that you were alone and not shoving everything aside to focus on pretending you were alright, it's a bit disorienting to experience for yourself. You didn't really have a problem with it, but that itself was kind of weird to you.

You look around the room, your visor adjusting your eyesight and- there are already lights on. You'd been doused in darkness even though the lights were on because you'd been blind without the visor providing you your sense of sight. A shiver goes down your spine as you take that in.

Quickly, you focus on the fact that the lights were _on_ \- which meant your brother never turned them off before he left. First off; that was wasting electricity, your brother was a forgetful little shit, or maybe he didn't forget and purposefully left them on for you in an act of passive-aggressiveness. Good to know he was feeling alright to do that... except maybe he wasn't and he truly forgot to turn off the lights. Either way, you were totally going to give him shit about it.

Second off; what time was it? 

Your internal clock usually kick you awake around four or five am, so which was it? 

Maybe you overslept for one rare moment... But looking out the still dark window, you've probably woken up really really early. Good to know that your internal clock still worked... Or maybe it was Papyrus' internal clock? He _did_ tend to wake up ridiculously early in Prosthesis AU. 

Your visor then proceeded to give you the time; 4:33 AM.

Oh, alright. That works... Wait, was the visor already in tune with the timezone here? You could have come from a completely different timezone even between dimensions!

... Thinking more about it, it wasn't really worth to find out or even think more about it because it'd just give you a headache. So without anymore protest, you accept the time.

At any rate though, you were awake and didn't feel the need to get back to sleep even though you probably could. 

In fact you probably had every right to get right back to sleep... however something tells you to keep awake. You were already awake anyway, time to utilize the time to the fullest yeah? You pull the blankets back and get out of bed, stretching slightly, feeling satisfied at the sound of popping... for some reason that felt better than usual, maybe it was because you were fully skeleton now?

You pause and quickly head over to the mirror on the nearby dresser. 

Right you were... fully skeleton.

Fully _slightly realistic but not and kinda cartoonish skeleton_ skeleton because really, the bone structure you had was more like sculpted skin than actual bone. The jawline, the cheeks, the teeth... You rub the lower part of 'your' face, taking in the softness and hardness of specific spots of your facial bone... Also the some faint faded scars and cracks on your face and skull. "... We Did This." You whisper, staring long and hard at your face.

Prosthesis Papyrus' Face.

Underneath that visor was a hole that you and your brother created just for Papyrus. Though Sans was the one to make the hole for Papyrus...

 _It H U R T S - Who'se screaming? You're screaming? It hurts, your face hurts brother whereareyou-_

Your fingers dig into the polished wood of the dresser. _Both_ you and your brother were the ones to come with the idea for Papyrus' hole... _and_ for Sans' spine and ribcage. 

_Numb. You felt numb. What was happening? Brother? Where was your brother?  
_ _Who? What? Why?  
_ _Your body was moving, what were you doing?  
Your body was moving. What were you doing?  
Your body was moving. What were-  
C R U N C H   
someone was screaming  
_

"I'm Sorry." You whisper against the reflection, guilt weighing heavily on your SOUL. "I Am So Sorry. It May Not Mean Much To You Papyrus, But Believe Me, My Brother And I Are So Sorry For What Has Happened To You Both. We... We Didn't-" Mean to write your suffering? Outright create it? Fucking _cause_ it? "... We'll Be Better. It- It Probably Won't Matter But, My Brother And I Will Be Better And Do Right By You... Somehow." You press your hand against the glass of the reflection and pretend that your reflection was the _true_ Papyrus. Prosthesis Papyrus.

You promise that somehow, you and your brother were going to do _something_ for them. Maybe return them to their rightful bodies? Would they want that? Could you and your brother accomplish that? 

You fucking don't know, but in this new impossible world, you could certainly try _something_.

Gazing into the mirror, you look right into your eyelights and see nothing else but your desperation, guilt and more. With a sigh, you look away and look down to your hand, curling and uncurling the fingers. For the moment, this was your body. It wasn't yours and you were a dirty fucking thief but- but it was yours for now.

"I Hope You Can Bear With Me Papyrus." 

Shaking your head, you head over to the clothes you'd changed out of from yesterday. You hesitate as you see the belt and remember the item you had found... the welding gun. 

One of the crucial tools you'd need for Sans'... For your brother's spine and rib cage. Spine especially. 

Should you... should you look for the rest? 

...

Actually you're getting your morning jitters, you need to jog- or walk. Anything else. 

You usually took a walk shortly after you woke up, Papyrus didn't do that but you certainly did. You needed to walk- unfortunately you didn't have a pathway here.

If you were going to stay in this universe, you were going to uphold your morning routine, or the most of it that you can. The brother side of your usual morning routine was now... unlikely to happen, what with him sleeping at the cottage. But the morning jog slash walk was something you can certainly do.

With that in mind, you change out of the sleepwear that you'd borrowed, making a mental note to wash them as soon as possible, perhaps ask someone after your morning walk. And it was indeed going to be a walk since you really had no idea where you would go, so you would walk around for a bit, see if you could find and establish a pathway for your jog. 

You should probably wait and ask the others for help but morning jitters were really getting to you.

Changing into your form fitting pants, orange button up shirt and dark red leather boots, you have to say, you look cool. "I Knew The Boots Were A Good Fit For You Papyrus, They Worked Well For The Others." You say, standing a bit taller with the boots in place. Truly, you were the brother that had better fashion tastes. You hesitate when you reach for the jacket though. Your orange button up seemed enough and though the jacket was cool, did you really need it to go outside? The belt and harness too...

It probably does have more than a few cool thing in it but like, you were fairly sure you didn't really need it to go on a walk... 

But what if something happened?

Just for that thought, you snag your gauntlets and gloves. These were good enough. 

Voila, the perfect outfit for a morning walk.

Well, not exactly. You'd definitely have to make a morning walk outfit- or rather buy it. Weren't Blue and the others going to take you and your brother clothes shopping today? That was handy, you'd buy proper clothing for a morning walk/jog then.

Satisfied, you fold the jacket, wrap the belt around it and... hide it underneath the mattress of the bed.

... 

You shrug, weird but it must be one of Papyrus' instincts to do. You haven't hidden underneath the mattress of your bed for years, or hidden things period. 

Before you leave for the door though, you pause then return to the mirror, staring once again at your reflection.

You're silent for a moment, "CHECK." 

[CHECKing... Reflection detection... Self-scanning commencing...]

Patiently you wait. 

PAPYRUS 'VISOR' SCRIPT  
LV 12  
HP 340 [LAST RECORDED SCAN]  
AT 50 [LAST RECORDED SCAN]  
DF 30 [LAST RECORDED SCAN]  
* AWAKE. TRYING TO DISTRACT HIMSELF.  
CONNECTION: STABLE   
SOUL STATUS: STABLE - FULLY RESTORED   
HYPNOS WAVELENGTH: NOT RECEIVING  
HYPNOS STATUS: OFFLINE [OUT OF RANGE]  
DATA STATUS: ENCRYPTED | LOCKED  


You snort slightly, how accurate, but hey at least the stats look fine.

Out of range huh? That's good... even if you're not exactly happy being so far from your brother.

Nonetheless though, it was for the best. Besides it wasn't as if you weren't going to see him today or forever.

With that in mind, you nod, mentally waving away the stats and head towards your new bed room door.

As you leave quietly through the door, you turn off the light because unlike your brother you didn't want to waste electricity. 

You were both essentially free-loading off of the multiple other Sanses and Papyruses, which now made you think on what you could possibly do to repay them. They were letting you and your brother sleep in their homes, eat their food, and soon enough buy clothing for them. Also create identities for them in this universe, official documents and everything.

Monsters were truly kind weren't they?

Quietly, you make your way downstairs, briefly stopping in the kitchen- which amazed you at how big it was. You were never in such a big home kitchen before holy fuck. You get yourself a cold drink of water before you leave through the back porch to explore the grounds.

Just as you leave, a certain skeleton wakes up from his slumber and started his own morning routine.

You take your time in walking, staying away from the cottage for now, you're sure that your brother hasn't woken up yet. 

You have no idea how much property the skeletons own here, but you suspect it's a big ass amount as you find no other neighbors in sight for fucking miles. 

But at least there's a road that leads presumably to either a city or a town... You can't wait to visit later today.

The sun is rising by the time you decide to head back, you take in the morning air and the chill atmosphere that really helps in waking you up for sure. And boy were the sunrises here pretty. It wasn't anything like the sunrises back in the city where you and your brother lived.

And the air was so clean here...

Papyrus should be here. Enjoying the clean air, stars know he and his brother needed it more often then not what with Prosthesis' steampunk reality. 

At any rate though, coming back to the porch you're surprised to see Blue, Noir and Pyrus sitting at the back porch with cups of coffee. Oh that was surprising but then again should you really? They were Papyruses, and one energetic Sans of course they would be up this early. Still, there was something kind of novel to the fact they were all sitting on the back porch of their giant ass house, drinking coffee and watching the sun rise.

It's a nice homely atmosphere and mood first thing in the morning.

You like it.

Unfortunately you kind of ruin the mood with you stretching and popping your back- look you hadn't meant to forget about the whole taboo on it okay?! 

Besides you never really got why they were ashamed or embarrassed it, seemed like just a strange trope to you and your brother. But how can you complain? There must be an actual reason to why, you won't ask now though. They seemed very embarrassed. 

Clearing your throat you give the three an amicable smile, "AT ANY RATE, IS THERE ANY COFFEE LEFT? OR SHALL I MAKE A NEW POT?" There, a subject changer and a good way to get coffee. 

Hey, you don't exactly need coffee to wake up but you like it nonetheless.

Blue quickly jumps aboard the subject change, "I THINK WE DO HAVE SOME COFFEE LEFT!" 

"INDEED! IF NOT, NO WORRIES, WE CAN MAKE A NEW POT OF COFFEE. WHAT DO YOU LIKE YOUR COFFEE WITH VISOR?" Pyrus joined in, looking so relieved that you're tempted to laugh. You don't, but you're tempted to.

"OH NO- I CAN DO IT MYSELF PYRUS PLEASE-" You protest only to be interrupted by an annoyed grunt by Noir.

"SHUT UP AND FUCKING SAY HOW YOU PREFER YOUR COFFEE- THE CREAM PUFF AND YOU WILL GO AT IT ALL DAY IF YOU TRY TO PROTEST."

Despite the rough demeanor and voice, you can tell that this version of Underfell Papyrus has truly mellowed out. You would have thought he'd be more hostile against you and your brother for being unknowns and such.

Makes you wonder a bit...

Ah, that's for later. "OH FINE, BUT YOU MUST LET ME MAKE BREAKFAST AT LEAST! I WILL NOT TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER!" You wanted pancakes and you wanted to make them yourself! Making some for others just make the taste better you swear.

This is a nice true start to the morning and day huh?

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im a sucker of doing things not typically to the norm.  
> blue our energetic marshmallow boi? he's not a morning person now, he needs coffee to kick start his energetic persona first thing in the morning or at least needs time to gather his boundless energy for the rest of the day. 
> 
> also this chapter is a bit shorter than the previous one because it's essentially almost the same as chine's chapter however it's still just over 5k, actually it's 5.2k so i am very satisfied. just visor's version. next chapter will hopefully be more interesting and maybe a bit longer; mornings and then start of shopping trip! 
> 
> also also big news everyone. on a whim i decided, you know what, let's make a thing and you know what i did.  
> i made a thing;  
> [come bother me while i explore tumblr once more after like hella fucking years](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/)  
> it's an empty wasteland that has no purpose as of yet aside from being linked to this ao3 story  
> also you get to ask questions either to me or the other skeletons around  
> and hey maybe i'll post more about both prosthesis and archaic au  
> maybe even draw  
> fair warning i'm not a good artist, i'm not shitty but like, don't expect professional artworks from me  
> i'll just draw what's in mind for this and you might get a better clue as to what's going on here  
> and hey  
> just more content
> 
> also translation for the wingdings, for some reason two phrases just end up as boxes somehow. sigh;  
> EMBODIMENT.
> 
> S︎O︎M︎E︎T︎H︎I︎N︎G︎ I︎S︎ D︎I︎F︎F︎E︎R︎E︎N︎T︎.︎
> 
> Y︎O︎U︎ H︎A︎V︎E︎ C︎H︎A︎N︎G︎E︎D︎ A︎ B︎I︎T︎ M︎Y︎ E︎M︎B︎O︎D︎I︎M︎E︎N︎T︎.︎
> 
> T︎H︎E︎ D︎I︎F︎F︎E︎R︎E︎N︎C︎E︎ I︎S︎ N︎O︎T︎ I︎M︎P︎O︎R︎T︎A︎N︎T︎ T︎O︎ T︎H︎E︎ C︎O︎U︎R︎T︎ S︎E︎S︎S︎I︎O︎N︎ I︎T︎S︎E︎L︎F︎.︎.︎.︎ B︎U︎T︎ Y︎O︎U︎R︎ C︎A︎S︎E︎ H︎A︎S︎ S︎H︎I︎F︎T︎E︎D︎ A︎N︎D︎ Y︎O︎U︎R︎ P︎E︎N︎A︎N︎C︎E︎ H︎A︎S︎ B︎E︎E︎N︎ A︎D︎D︎E︎D︎.︎ S︎O︎ M︎U︎C︎H︎ S︎I︎N︎ F︎O︎R︎ S︎U︎C︎H︎ L︎I︎T︎T︎L︎E︎ C︎H︎A︎N︎G︎E︎.︎
> 
> O︎R︎ I︎S︎ T︎H︎E︎ D︎I︎F︎F︎E︎R︎E︎N︎C︎E︎ M︎O︎R︎E︎ I︎M︎P︎O︎R︎T︎A︎N︎T︎ T︎O︎ Y︎O︎U︎R︎ C︎A︎S︎E︎?︎ Y︎O︎U︎R︎ I︎N︎N︎O︎C︎E︎N︎C︎E︎ M︎A︎Y︎ B︎E︎ P︎R︎O︎V︎E︎N︎ W︎I︎T︎H︎ T︎H︎I︎S︎.︎ O︎R︎ P︎E︎R︎H︎A︎P︎S︎ N︎O︎T︎.︎
> 
> C︎O︎R︎R︎E︎C︎T︎.︎ Y︎O︎U︎R︎ S︎E︎N︎T︎E︎N︎C︎E︎ H︎A︎S︎ N︎O︎T︎ C︎H︎A︎N︎G︎E︎D︎.︎
> 
> B︎E︎H︎A︎V︎E︎
> 
> W︎E︎ S︎H︎O︎U︎L︎D︎ H︎A︎V︎E︎ S︎T︎A︎R︎T︎E︎D︎ T︎H︎E︎ C︎O︎U︎R︎T︎.︎ S︎O︎ M︎A︎N︎Y︎ C︎R︎I︎M︎I︎N︎A︎L︎ S︎I︎N︎N︎E︎R︎S︎ I︎N︎ O︎N︎E︎ P︎L︎A︎C︎E︎.︎
> 
> T︎H︎A︎T︎ D︎O︎E︎S︎ N︎O︎T︎ C︎H︎A︎N︎G︎E︎ T︎H︎E︎I︎R︎ L︎O︎V︎E︎,︎ T︎H︎E︎Y︎ M︎U︎S︎T︎ F︎A︎C︎E︎ T︎H︎E︎ C︎O︎U︎R︎T︎ A︎N︎D︎ B︎E︎ J︎U︎D︎G︎E︎D︎.︎ T︎H︎E︎I︎R︎ C︎A︎S︎E︎S︎ M︎A︎Y︎ B︎E︎ C︎O︎M︎P︎L︎I︎C︎A︎T︎E︎D︎ B︎U︎T︎ T︎H︎E︎Y︎ M︎U︎S︎T︎ R︎E︎P︎E︎N︎T︎ A︎N︎D︎ F︎E︎E︎L︎ P︎E︎N︎I︎T︎E︎N︎C︎E︎.︎
> 
> P︎E︎R︎H︎A︎P︎S︎ T︎H︎E︎ C︎H︎A︎N︎G︎E︎ I︎S︎ I︎M︎P︎O︎R︎T︎A︎N︎T︎.︎ Y︎O︎U︎R︎ V︎I︎E︎W︎ H︎A︎S︎ B︎E︎E︎N︎ C︎L︎O︎U︎D︎E︎D︎ W︎H︎E︎N︎ I︎T︎ S︎H︎O︎U︎L︎D︎ B︎E︎ I︎M︎P︎A︎R︎T︎I︎A︎L︎.︎ I︎F︎ T︎H︎E︎Y︎ D︎O︎ N︎O︎T︎ D︎E︎S︎E︎R︎V︎E︎ P︎R︎O︎S︎E︎C︎U︎T︎I︎O︎N︎ T︎H︎E︎N︎ T︎H︎E︎Y︎ S︎H︎O︎U︎L︎D︎ P︎R︎O︎V︎E︎ S︎O︎.︎
> 
> D︎E︎L︎A︎Y︎ A︎L︎L︎ Y︎O︎U︎ W︎A︎N︎T︎ E︎M︎B︎O︎D︎I︎M︎E︎N︎T︎.︎ B︎U︎T︎ T︎H︎E︎ C︎O︎U︎R︎T︎ S︎E︎S︎S︎I︎O︎N︎ W︎I︎L︎L︎ I︎N︎E︎V︎I︎T︎A︎B︎L︎Y︎ B︎E︎G︎I︎N︎.︎ I︎T︎ A︎L︎W︎A︎Y︎S︎ W︎I︎L︎L︎.︎ Y︎O︎U︎ W︎I︎L︎L︎ N︎O︎T︎ B︎E︎ A︎B︎L︎E︎ T︎O︎ K︎E︎E︎P︎ T︎H︎E︎I︎R︎ C︎A︎S︎E︎S︎ A︎W︎A︎Y︎ F︎R︎O︎M︎ U︎S︎ F︎O︎R︎E︎V︎E︎R︎.︎
> 
> ...


	11. Breakfast with Skeletons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you can't tell this story might be on a slow-ish side  
> i'm taking my own pace for this but i'll try and make sure it's still entertaining for everyone involved.  
> at any rate though, we've got a morning to get to and a shopping trip to do
> 
> also as you can see, this work is no longer anonymous  
> 

* * *

Breakfast goes as well as you'd expect; fucking fantastic.

Though you weren't used to the quantity of breakfast being served, you did your best to finish your plate and eat as much as you could handle. You didn't want to seem impolite after all, and the quality of the breakfast was five stars anyway. Papyrus and Sans- uh, Crooks and Axe coaxed you to eat a bit more though, and unable to resist their coaxing from your favorite skeletons you ate just a bit more. 

Fuck you feel so full, but thankfully not to the point of puking it all back up. That'd be a waste of breakfast made by _The_ Great Horrortale Papyrus! 

Best morning, ten out of ten.

"my compliments to the chef, the breakfast was _egg_ cellent." You say after finishing the last of your eggs, punning on the fly just to see Axe's delight and the fond exasperation on Crook's face. 

"PLEASE CHINE, DON'T START THIS EARLY IN THE MORNING." Crooks pleaded from his seat besides Axe.

Axe shrugged and glanced back towards the kitchen with an amused smile, "i dunno bro, seems the perfect _thyme_ for it."

"BROTHER..."

The three of you were sitting at the cottage's dining table, compared to the mansion's dining table from last night, this table was minuscule. However it was still big enough to comfortably hold up to six, maybe seven people. At any rate though, you definitely prefer the cottage dining table than the mansion one, it feels more homely here. 

You just kinda wish your brother was here too... Oh well, you can't really do shit about it. And it wasn't as if you couldn't see him anymore- mornings and nights were just going to have be separate more often from now on. 

You didn't want the risk of starting a Court Session after all.

That was something you both _never_ want to start or experience for yourselves. 

The Court Session...

A near-violent shiver crawls up your spine, the weight of your sins weighing heavy on your shoulders and the knowledge of your guilt makes your head heavy. 

In a writer's point of view, as a world-builder's point of view; The Court Session itself was an interesting thing, something that would give entertainment and intrigue, just one of the many facets of the story, of the world to pull people in. 

You had thought about it when you had contemplated Sans' title and job, he was The Judge of the Underground, he along with the other Sanses and selections of Papyruses were the Judges and technically the Executioners of their universe. But what of the Jury? 

The saying of 'Judge, Jury, and Executioner' had come into your mind as you and your brother thought of ideas for Prosthesis AU and from there it just _clicked_. A new idea to be integrated into your AU, something that linked Sans and Papyrus together, their very backstory revolving that phrase.

Unfortunately for them, and now for you... You and your brother had been thorough and unkind in making their backstory. 

In making their lives.

Just thinking about the whole thing was certainly ruining your mood and getting you really upset-

"hey." You're snapped out of your thoughts by Axe, Crooks is gone- actually he's now in the kitchen, most of the plates from the table are gone, have they finished eating? Shit, you zoned out for a good bit there. You look at Axe, he's grinning crookedly at you but you can see some concern in his red eyelight, however instead of asking if you were okay, he nudges you lightly and chuckles lowly. "knock knock."

You pause, oh, _oh_ \- you're already starting to smile when you reply. "who's there?"

"boo."

You know this one. "boo who."

Axe's grin is so fucking stupid when he replies and even though you know this one, your smile has grown exponentially when he does. "stars it's just a joke, don't go crying on me now pal."

"oh that's bad. okay, my turn. knock knock." Hey, if Axe was using knock knock jokes, you'd do the same. 

Axe didn't seem to mind at all, if anything he's grinning even wide. To anyone else, the way he was grinning and the fact he was intimidating, his grinning face would be terrifying. To you though, it's one of the best grins you've ever seen. "who's there." 

"razor." His bone brow rose.

"razor who?"

You form finger guns and grin mischievously at him, "razor hands, this is a stick up." You even dare to jokingly poke him with your finger guns.

Axe chuckles and jokingly raises his hands, "oh fuck it is? oh no, please, don't hurt me." 

"JUST WHAT TOMFOOLERY HAS HAPPENED WHILE I WAS BRIEFLY IN THE KITCHEN? PLEASE TELL ME I DID NOT HEAR A KNOCK KNOCK JOKE." Crooks exclaimed as he returned from the kitchen for the rest of the plates. He sees you finger gunning his brother with Axe keeping his hands in the air. "UH..."

"it's both a knock knock joke and a stick up bro." Axe told him with clear amusement, something you mirrored.

Crooks sighed, shaking his head, "I SEE. I DO NOT APPROVE OF EITHER BUT I WILL NOT INTERFERE WHATSOEVER, PLEASE CHINE, CONTINUE WITH YOUR STICK UP." He said, focusing on gathering the rest of the plates. You decide to abandon the stick up to help Crooks, Axe puts down his hands and does the same only for Crooks to interrupt, "IT'S FINE YOU TWO, I CAN CARRY THE REST OF THESE AND WASH THEM PROPERLY!" 

You want to help though. "hey, at least let me help with the dish washin', i gotta do somethin." 

"I APPRECIATE THE HELP CHINE BUT I INSIST! IT'S ALRIGHT! BUT I SUPPOSE IT WILL BE FASTER WITH SOME HELP." 

Score. 

Man, morning in the Horrortale owned cottage is so domestic.

You really don't mind at all.

* * *

It was a bit surprising when Visor insisted on making breakfast, however the others weren't able to say no and let Visor loose in the kitchen to create a big batch of pancakes not only for them but for upcoming skeletons that would come to the kitchen for breakfast.

Visor was quite adamant in making pancakes for everyone in the mansion regardless if they were already awake or not. 

"WOW VISOR THESE ARE GOOD!" Blue exclaimed after swallowing the soft, syrup-soaked pancakes. 

Visor gave him a thankful smile, "I'M GLAD YOU THINK SO, I RARELY COOK FOR MY BROTHER AND I BUT WE'RE BOTH PRETTY DECENT. THAT AND PANCAKES ARE SOMETHING I LIKE TO ENJOY FOR BREAKFAST MORE OFTEN THEN NOT WHENEVER I HAVE TIME TO MAKE BREAKFAST INSTEAD OF EATING LEFTOVERS." He says, making Noir falter slightly from his own food, not that Visor noticed.

Pyrus and Blue certainly did though. 

"I SEE. HOW OFTEN DO YOU OR EVEN YOUR BROTHER COOK THEN VISOR?" Pyrus couldn't help but ask, mindful to Noir's intense gaze at him. 

Visor was more focused on the pancakes, flipping another one to it's side. "NOT OFTEN, MY BROTHER AND I ARE EITHER TOO BUSY OR TIRED TO COOK FOR OURSELVES, OR THERE WASN'T ENOUGH FOOD IN OUR ABODE." He was ignorant to the grimaces on the other skeletons faces as he moved along the kitchen to drink from his second cup of coffee. 

At the moment, Blue, Pyrus and Noir ate at the kitchen table rather than the dining room, it was really too big for just three or four skeletons and the three of them had wanted to watch Visor use the kitchen- they'd been a bit hesitant, remembering Pyrus and Blue's own cooking skills until their imminent improvement but their worries were unfounded as thankfully Visor didn't seem to be that bad of a cook. The pancakes were really well done actually.

However, the conversation was reminding Noir of the fact that Visor and his brother had eaten nothing but take out and rations in that war-torn universe of theirs. Pancakes must be a rare luxury they had whenever they could possibly had. And of course Chine knew how to cook as well, it was a bit surprising, but one must knew a lot of things to survive in a world- Axe himself could cook just fine like the rest of their brothers and was the least lazy when it came to cooking.

That surprised no one considering the universe he and Crooks came from.

Visor was oblivious to the grimaces, and before any of them could ask anything else, a few more skeletons wandered into the kitchen.

" _Coffee._ "  
"I smell pancakes."   
"As Do I!"  
"Ah! Visor, You're Making Pancakes!"

G, Green, Bones and Tango came into the kitchen, well, G, Bones and Tango came right behind a groaning Green who immediately went over to the coffee pot. Visor looked over to them and gave them a welcoming smile as a greeting, "Indeed." He said, voice a bit more quiet as he eyed the grumpy-looking Green who was reverently holding the coffee pot as he poured his own cup. "I Insisted On Making Breakfast, Or Rather Pancakes For Breakfast. It Is The Least That I Could Do For How Much You All Have Done For Me And My Brother." 

"We've Insisted In Turn That He Didn't Have To Do It But He Didn't Take No As An Answer." Blue told them with amusement as they went to sit down. "Oh! And Visor, You Haven't Met G Yet Have You? G, Say Hello!" He exclaimed and giving Green an apologetic smile for his exclamation. Green waved him off, feeling much better and more awake now that he had coffee in his hands and mouth. 

G though was a bit distracted when he saw Visor, all he could think of at the moment was what happened between him and his brother which was a _private moment_ that G had _no right_ to know. "Uh- hey." He said, snapping himself out of his thoughts and giving Visor a smooth smile- or attempted to, he felt guilty and somewhat nervous because again, he had witnessed the skeleton currently making pancakes in front of him being sung to sleep by his older brother.

Stars, G felt so bad.

He felt a bit more guiltier when Visor aimed his polite but pleasant at him as he plated the pancake on to its stack. "It Is Nice To Finally Meet You G. Please Wait A Bit More, I Will Make More Pancakes." He said, taking the stacked pancakes towards the kitchen table, supposedly it should've been for him but he was clearly giving it up for the rest of the skeletons. 

Tango and Bones immediately protested, "OH NO VISOR! WE CAN MAKE PANCAKES OURSELVES, WHY DON'T YOU EAT THE ONES YOU'VE ALREADY MADE!"

"REALLY IT'S NO BOTHER, I WILL EAT SHORTLY AFTERWARDS I MAKE MORE PANCAKES. I WILL BE VERY OFFENDED IF YOU DO NOT EAT THE PANCAKES I'VE ALREADY MADE, I HAVE DECIDED TO GIVE THEM TO YOU AFTER ALL!" Visor retorted with a frown, though it was fake with how much the frown was twitching and the corner of his mouth twitching upwards- he knew he won when he saw them sigh.

G had no qualms in taking a pancake for himself, standing up and grabbing a few plates and cups before turning to the table. "Hey, he said he gave them to us." He told Green, and the others with a shrug when they looked at him. "Yo bro, pass the coffee pot." Green looked reluctant but nonetheless, he passed him the coffee pot. "Thanks bro."

Green mumbled something incoherent as he sipped his coffee, accepting the extra plate that was handed to him from Tango and Bones, G had provided the plates when he stood up. 

Breakfast was very enjoyable with the added company, Visor eventually joined the eating with a freshly made batch of pancakes for himself and for G, Green, Bones and Tango. Visor also thanked Bones and Tango for their clothing, promising to return them as soon as he could after washing them after shopping. Bones and Tango beamed but reassured Visor that they could take the clothing any time Visor felt it, or even better, Visor could keep it if he wished!

It was a really nice breakfast.

* * *

"... bones and tango did _what_?" Axe and Crooks had to wince the way Chine's voice got a bit louder for disbelieving emphasis. 

All three of them were in the kitchen, having just finished the dishes. Axe had finally told Chine about how Tango and Bones CHECKed Visor last night, seeing his stats after his brother had either zoned out of temporarily dissociated. They had agreed to tell them about it anyway and Axe decided to tell Chine sooner rather than later.

"I Am Sorry Chine," Crooks started, seeing the shifting emotions on the smaller skeleton's face.

Chine glanced at him, "what for? you're not the one to have check'd my bro." He told him, giving him a wane and strained smile, the sight of it made both bigger monsters feel bad. "'sides, it's not like i don't understand _why_ they did that- they were being all concerned and shit. still, they check'd visor..." Unknown to both was that Chine had been feeling nervous and a bit fearful over the fact that Visor had been CHECKed before remembering on how he, himself had looked at Visor's stats and they seemed fine... 

"Nonetheless Though, I Am Sorry About That." 

"you don't have to- sigh, apology accepted crooks... there anything else i should know?" Chine questioned, glancing between brothers who nervously shuffled in place. 

Axe nervously scratched the edge of his cracks, a lingering bad habit that he had no luck in breaking any time soon, "well, after we told you 'bout that, we wanted to ask permission to check you." He was surprised when Chine reached over to grasp his left hand, stopping him from scratching- he was getting close to picking the edge of his hole. 

"please don't do that." Chine told him, a concerned frown on his face. Axe gruffed slightly, face colored lightly as he gently shook off the hand. "sorry for suddenly doing that but- you scratching at your hole like that didn't look too good." Chine apologized, he wasn't sorry for stopping him, only for the fact he grabbed Axe's hand without saying anything first. 

Axe had to wonder if Chine had to do it with Visor, did Visor sometimes scratch at the cracks that were there near the hole? Picked at the edge? _Feel_ out of the edge? It was a disturbing thing to do and a bad habit, but Axe couldn't help himself sometimes. Did Visor as well? Though he had that screen over the hole for most of the time, but whenever he had it off for whatever reason, did he have the bad habit of picking, scratching, feeling at the cracks, the edge, _the hole_ -

"IT IS NOT GOOD NO." Crooks replied with a sigh, "BUT HE CANNOT HELP HIMSELF MOST OF THE TIME. THANK YOU FOR STOPPING HIM THOUGH CHINE." 

"yeah thanks."

"'s no problem." Chine smiled, though it dropped as he looked thoughtful before he sighed, "y'know what. sure." 

Both brothers blinked in surprise, "huh?"

"the whole, checking me shit. you have my permission to do that." Chine told them, surprising them, "it's a given that you'd all want to see my stats and shit. i don't really mind, but yeah asking permission is definitely something i appreciate, same with my brother. the dumbass'll be a bit angry about it but he'll understand it too. next time though, you'd really have to make sure you got permission to check him unless it's an emergency or something." 

Axe nodded, both he and Crooks looked relieved. "a'ight, we should change change and head on to the mansion then." He glanced at the clock, "'s a bit early but there'll be plenty awake-"

"actually can you just check me right now and just tell them later?" Chine interrupted him, blue eyelights darting to the side while his hands fidgeted with the hem of his shirt. "not... not too comfy with the thought of multiple people, even if they're like other versions of s-me and my brother _checking_ me out." He punned with a somewhat nervous smile. 

Axe's eye sockets widened, "wh- are you sure? you want me to do it?" He questioned, phalanges twitching at his side and he restrained the urge to reach up to his skull. 

"YOU CAN ASK CLASSIC OR THE OTHERS YOU KNOW." Crooks told the other skeleton softly.

Chine shook his head, "no- it's fine. i trust you to do it, and out of all the skeletons in the area. i don't think i mind havin' the two of you knowing my stats first." He told him honestly with a small smile.

At that moment, Axe and Crooks had to wonder why. Why did Chine not mind having them know first? Why did Chine seem to be so at ease with their presence despite their intimidating looks and demeanor? Sure they were getting better at settling into this world, their problems were being dealt with steadily and slowly, but they were still...

"'course, if you don't want to do it and just like, want me to do it at the mansion tha's fine too." Chine added in quickly, now playing with the end of his scarf instead, glancing at the both of them with a somewhat nervous look. 

Axe looked at the scarf, his sockets narrowing slightly as he remembered this morning. Chine was quick to catch that and clutched the end of the scarf. Axe saw that in turn and sighed, "i- okay. if you really don't mind us seein' your stats first."

"WE DON'T MIND IN TURN IN DOING IT AS LONG AS YOU ARE FINE WITH IT." Crooks continued, his crooked smile reassuring and wide- terrifying to most, but definitely comforting to both Axe and Chine who relaxed and smiled back at Crooks without a hint of fear or anything else negative. 

Chine really did not mind their appearances. "of course i'm fine with it. i know we just like, met yesterday and shit, but i have a good feeling in my nonexistent gut that you both are good skeletons to trust." He tells them, though his cheeks colored light blue as he coughed, "and, i really think you both look cool. 've always enjoyed horrort- er, horror stuff. horror novels, movies, stories- you two look really cool to me, and hey, you're both really nice too." He admitted, looking sheepish and slightly apologetic.

Both horror brothers felt like that if almost anyone else said that they wouldn't feel as flattered and genuinely pleased as they did now when Chine admitted that. Crooks beamed at Chine, smile growing even wider while Axe chuckled lowly, Chine's blush deepened a bit but he was now grinning at them both. "really now? gotta say pal, ya got _horrific_ taste." 

Crooks' smile wilted a bit while Chine snorted, "if you mean horrific in a good sense then yeah, yeah i do." Chine agreed, blush receding quickly. "so, check me?" He questioned, adjusting himself so that he was standing straight and ready.

Axe and Crooks exchanged a glance, Axe waited until his brother nodded before turning back to Chine. "yeah. ready?" 

Chine took in a deep breath and nodded at him. "ready."

The bigger skeleton's magic flared and he brought Chine's SOUL out. The upside down heart phasing through Chine's chest, Chine's breath shuddered slightly and his hands flew to his chest in what looked like instinct. But his eyes were solely on his SOUL, a stats screen appeared before the white upside down heart.

SANS 'CHINE' SCRIPT  
LV 10  
HP 1  
AT 2  
DF 5  
* the easiest enemy. can only deal 2 damage. he's surprised.

Axe narrowed his eye sockets at the LV, three levels behind his brother. Did that mean that his brother was stronger? No, it probably meant that Visor was more willing to use violence despite his politeness and general pleasantry. It was a bit surprising, but then again maybe not. Though he was sad to see the fact that Chine had the same HP as most of them did. 

"huh. okay." Chine said, voice distant and thoughtful, though he was snapped out of it when Axe gently used his magic to push his SOUL back where it belonged. 

"ARE YOU ALRIGHT CHINE?" Crooks questioned, a bit worried as Chine shook his head and gave him a reassuring smile. 

"yeah yeah, i'm fine. i'm good. just- been a while since someone pulled out my soul a-and it wasn't like, an encounter or dangerous situation." He said with an obviously joking tone but both Crooks and Axe took that seriously. How could they not? It was no doubt dangerous in Chine's universe, it was surprising on how Chine just let Axe check his stats and pull out his SOUL so easily like that.

But then again, he looked a bit shaken and Axe felt guilty even though Chine had given him consent to do it.

Shaking his head, Axe came close to Chine and nudged him, "so, i've been reading this horror novel in braille." He started casually, temporarily confusing not only Chine but his own brother, "something's about to happen. _i can feel it._ "

"BROTHER, YOU KNOW BRAILLE?" Crooks questioned cluelessly but Chine got it almost immediately and burst out into laughter. 

" _oh my stars axe_ -" "WHAT IS SO FUNNY CHINE? WHA- OH. _OH_. BROTHER! WHILE I WILL ADMIT THAT WAS CLEVER, THAT WAS STILL A BAD JOKE!" "you're smiling though paps." "I AM AND I HATE IT!"

* * *

Your brother arrives into the mansion shortly after breakfast, other skeleton's breakfast of course, you had finished your breakfast early in the morning and had changed accordingly for the incoming shopping trip. He's dressed in almost all of Prosthesis' Sans' clothing, though he was not wearing the utility belt, gloves or the harness, which is good because though his clothing were admittedly a bit much for an outing- their dystopian clothing wouldn't really fit in with the modern universe they were in but without the harness, belt, gloves it would be considered alright enough.

You yourself had forgone your own harness, gloves, belt and gauntlet. 

You kind of wish you could leave behind your visor, you'd get tons of attention for it but unfortunately you needed the visor to see. At least the visor did just more than let you see.

At some point, you and your brother really need to discuss more about your situation. Particularly on what to do, and what they _could_ do.

But for now, it was time for shopping.

"BONES AND TANGO DID _WHAT_?!" You exclaimed, posture tense and visor showing exclamations. Bones and Tango winced at the side, they were all within the living room with the others. They were all spread around the living room, with your brother of course, hanging out with the Horrortale brothers- all three of them standing as they had just arrived. Chine had just told you what Axe had told him, and telling by the similar winces from the others, they knew about it as well.

Shopping would have to be temporarily on hold for a moment, they would all go clothes shopping _after_ this little discussion.

Chine rolled his eyes at your exclamation, "they checked you, saw your stats while you fucking dissociated like a dumbass." He drawled, smirking at your pointed look at him. 

Still, what he said was concerning. What if your stats had shown something particularly unnerving to them? Like the fact _you're not actually fucking Papyrus?!_

Bones and Tango were wilting on the couch that they shared, looking guilty, "WE'RE VERY SORRY VISOR! WE- I WAS TRYING TO USE MY HEALING MAGIC ON YOU, IT DID NOT WORK AND I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT ELSE TO DO." Tango explained, slumping with a sad frown. 

"I WAS THE ONE WHO CHECK'ED YOU FIRST. TANGO MERELY FOLLOWED MY ACTIONS." Bones tells you, a comforting hand on Tango's shoulder. The two seemed close, not only because they were sitting really close to each other. "I AM VERY SORRY VISOR. WE SHOULD HAVE ASKED FOR YOUR PERMISSION." 

You pinch the bridge of your nose, or at least instinctively try to. You don't have a nose anymore, what you end up doing is just pressing your pinched fingers against your visor as a digital nose hole appears alongside your closed digital eyelights. "I- SIGH, IT IS QUITE ALRIGHT YOU TWO. I UNDERSTAND THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE SITUATION. I DO NOT LIKE IT, BUT I UNDERSTAND IT AND I FORGIVE YOU BOTH." They still looked guilty, and guilt honestly _never_ suited _any_ Papyrus because now you feel bad.

There's just something about Papyrus' face, and probably Sans' too, that just make you feel bad whenever you make them lose their smile or something. 

Except your brother, despite your brother's new face you know you will find yourself rarely swayed by the lost of his smile. 

Definitely.

"NEXT TIME, IF THERE _IS_ A NEXT TIME, IF I AM CAPABLE TO ANSWER, PLEASE ASK FOR MY PERMISSION TO BE CHECKED. THAT GOES FOR ALL OF YOU AND I _SUPPOSE_ IT ALSO INCLUDES CHECKING MY BROTHER... WHOM I ASSUME HAS ALREADY LET AXE AND CROOKS TO CHECK HIM." Chine bares his teeth at you in a wide grin, a glint of smugness and repressed genuine joy in his eyelights. 

Of course your brother would let his favorite AU skeletons CHECK him. And with the way Chine was so happy about it without a hint of nervousness, you assume they found nothing about the fact he wasn't Sans at all. You suspected as much, but there had been a chance...

At any rate, you're both very lucky your stats aren't exposing critical information about you two.

"you let axe and crooks check you? see your stats?" Red questioned, from near the Horrortale brothers and your brother.

Chine turned to him. "yeah? got a problem with that bud?" 

Red shook his head, "nope. good fer you. guess they'll tell us while you an' your bro go on with blue, pyrus, mutt, and boss go on yer shopping spree." Noir roughly cleared his throat, sending Red a narrowed socket look, "er- i mean my awesome bro too." Noir looked pleased, though he tried not to.

Your brother frowned and turned towards Axe and Crooks, "your both not going?"

Axe shrugged with Crooks shaking his head, "IT WOULD BE BETTER IF WE DID NOT ACCOMPANY YOU. WE TRY NOT TO HEAD INTO POPULATED AREAS OFTEN, ONLY IF NECESSARY AND THE RARE OTHER OCCASION. TOO MANY PEOPLE, AND WE ARE NOT EXACTLY AS VISUALLY ACCEPTING AS THE REST OF THE OTHERS." 

"we're racist bait bud, _bait_ you got on ahead and have fun on y'er trip. my bro and i have some chores to do at the cottage anyway, maybe another time we can like, go with you somewhere." Axe told Chine who furrowed his bone brows at the words of 'racist bait'.

You both make the conclusion that yes, monster racists exist because of course they do, and damn. You're both monsters now so that was going to be interesting... 

Oh well, it wasn't as if you both hadn't met racists and assholes before.

"damn, yeah maybe next time." Chine sighed, obviously disappointed but able to bounce right back with a grin, "when i'm back i'll definitely have one of those furred hoods that you, mutt and red have. they look comfy." He told them, glancing at Axe, Mutt and Red who both grin back at him. 

"damn right they are!" Red laughed, smugly adjusting his furred hood. 

Axe patted Chine's shoulder, "nice. you'll be part of our furred hood gang."

"we have a gang?" Mutt muttered but was obviously all for it.

You roll your eyes. "CHILDISH." You can't help but spit out.

Chine whirls to you and sneers, "oh, as if you weren't going to get either a sweater like green's or one of those heeled boots that pyrus, black and noir have." He says with a taunting voice. 

You color a bit- the sweater looked far more comfortable than a mere furred hood alright? And yes, you find those heeled boots quite nice as well! Still though, you scowl at your brother who gives you a smug look on his face.

"AHEM!" Blue intervened before either of you could say or do anything else. Was it just you or did his smile seem a bit strained? Nonetheless, he beams at both you and your brother. "ENOUGH TALK! I THINK THE MALL SHOULD BE OPEN BY NOW! I THINK IT IS TIME WE LEAVE!" He exclaimed, posing victoriously and with another magic check, you see that yes, Blue was using his magic to make his clothing billow dramatically. You almost forgot about that and you cannot, for the life of you, repress the smile on your face.

"INDEED!" Pyrus agreed, _stars there he goes too, magic going swoosh_ , posing with Blue. "COME NOW VISOR! CHINE! YOU WILL BE RIDING WITH BLUE AND I IN MY GLORIOUS CAR! MUTT AND NOIR SHALL BE TAKING NOIR'S CAR!" Apparently Noir and Mutt needed to buy something as well so that was why they were coming along. 

"THAT SOUNDS EXCELLENT PYRUS, LEAD THE WAY." You tell them, smiling at both energetic skeleton's antics. There were perks to being here, even if you weren't supposed to be here.

You and your brother follow the four of them to the garage. Though, your brother hangs back and quietly converses with you. "yo, i managed to get into sa- _my_ holcog this morning. everything's fine, no connection though, not compatible." He says quietly. Oh, well wasn't that interesting? "also found s- _my_ poster. the wanted one. it's great. you got one too right?" 

You grimace as you reluctantly nod, you had found it while briefly checking the other pockets of your belt and jacket. "I Rather Regret A Few Things When I Saw It." You admit quietly.

Your brother chuckles sardonically besides you. "mood brother. mood."

As interesting as it had been to create the Prosthesis AU... You somewhat wish you could rewrite everything and have Papyrus and Sans live better. For the _world_ of Prosthesis to be better...

It was too late now though.

* * *

WANTED   
BOUNTY LEVEL: PLATINUM  
ALIVE (MONIDUS)  
DEAD OR ALIVE (ADVERSIA)  
PAPYRUS W.D. SCRIPT   
AKA THE JURY, SAVAGE EXECUTIONER, W.D. THE YOUNGER  
<MURDER>  
<KIDNAPPING>  
<ILLEGAL TRAFFICKING>  
<THEFT>  
<ARSON>  
<ESCAPED CONVICT>  
<WANTED INTERNATIONALLY>  
REWARD:  
THE ROYAL FAMILY OF MONIDUS OFFERS ANY CONCEIVABLE REWARD FOR THEIR CAPTURE.   
THE GOVERNMENT OF ADVERSIA OFFERS ANY CONCEIVABLE REWARD FOR THEIR CAPTURE.  
BE WARNED, THIS DANGEROUS INDIVIDUAL WAS LAST SEEN IN THE CAPITAL OF RIVERIA, SUSPECTED KILLER OF BELOVED MONIDUS HERO GERSON 'THE WISE' TORTO AND MANY OTHER CITIZENS.  
  
  


WANTED   
BOUNTY LEVEL: PLATINUM  
ALIVE (MONIDUS)  
DEAD OR ALIVE (ADVERSIA)  
SANS W.D. SCRIPT   
AKA THE JUDGE, EMPTY EXECUTIONER, W.D. THE OLDER  
<MURDER>  
<KIDNAPPING>  
<ILLEGAL TRAFFICKING>  
<THEFT>  
<ARSON>  
<ESCAPED CONVICT>  
<WANTED INTERNATIONALLY>  
REWARD:  
THE ROYAL FAMILY OF MONIDUS OFFERS ANY CONCEIVABLE REWARD FOR THEIR CAPTURE.   
THE GOVERNMENT OF ADVERSIA OFFERS ANY CONCEIVABLE REWARD FOR THEIR CAPTURE.  
BE WARNED, THIS DANGEROUS INDIVIDUAL WAS LAST SEEN IN THE CITY OF NEW FALLWAY, SUSPECTED MURDERER OF RESPECTED ADVERSIA GENERAL AQUA 'THE PATIENT' CAIRO AND MANY OTHER HUMAN CIVILIANS.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> come do shit at my new tumblr, and even if you don't want to do that but want to know a bit more about chine and visor? then look at the tumblr, there's even a post about chine and his metal spine and ribcage.  
> [VindictiveSkeletons](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/)  
> i might change the url but hey it's a start  
> got questions or just want to talk? to either me or the skeleton boys themselves? stick around then and stick around now to comment you want  
> i may not reply often i like many other writers enjoy reading comments to pass the time and motivate ourselves  
> 


	12. Ebott Super Mall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and thus the shopping trip commences
> 
> also i just realized something today  
> i am on the _12th chapter_ with _63.4k words_ of this story and we've only JUST gotten on chine and visor's second day in the undertale au.  
> i  
> i'm fucking done with myself, both horrified and awed because i hadn't expected that nor had i planned that at all.  
> also this just proves that this'll be a long, probably harrowing and slow story right?  
> fucking hell  
> maybe i'll timeskip a few times to compensate, i have no idea
> 
> let it be known that i only know about half the time on what i'm doing, the other half i am staring at this story and contemplating my existence as a writer and the competence of my brain because holy fuck this isn't what i signed up for

* * *

In the game's true pacifist ending, Papyrus ended up buying a nice red car in the ending credits. It kind of looked like a convertible, or at least a car that didn't have a roof. 

In this universe, Pyrus _did_ end up buying a red convertible. It sat alongside another car, a black car- you and your brother don't know what model or line it is. You weren't car fanatics or familiar with cars themselves, real cars anyway. 

The mansion's garage was quite spacious, there were only two cars, Pyrus' red convertible and a black ferrari that turned out to be Noir's. Aside from the two cars, there were actual motorcycles parked at the side, they were all well taken care of and well maintained but not to the point of being brand new- they had all clear signs of use. These skeletons clearly took care of their vehicles and regularly rode on them.

Also the sight of the shining and well kept modes of transportation reminded you on just how much they were loaded with money. You suspect that their currency had a hand to that, which also made you think about you and your brother monetary situation. You both had to think about how to make money, it didn't sit well with either of you that you were both basically going to freeload on them for the next few weeks or even months if you both don't figure things out.

"woah..." Your brother breathes, looking over the vehicles with wide eye sockets. "cool rides." He says, looking over a big, sleek dark red motorbike. 

Blue, Pyrus and Noir preened, a somewhat smug air settling around them while Mutt only gave him a small smile. "WE KNOW! WE ALL HAVE OUR DRIVING LICENSES- LEGITIMATELY ACQUIRED OF COURSE. WHICH REMINDS ME, VISOR, CHINE, IF YOU BOTH WANT TO ACQUIRE YOUR OWN LICENCES YOU MUST TAKE DRIVING TESTS AND GET THEM THE NORMAL WAY."

"WE HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THAT, IT IS ONLY FAIR. YOU ARE ALREADY PROVIDING US WITH MORE THAN WE COULD EVER HOPE FOR, WHEN THE TIME COMES EITHER MY BROTHER AND I SHALL TAKE THIS UNIVERSE'S DRIVING TESTS." You and your brother nod, should be easy enough. Even though you both never owned a car before, you were both well adept in driving on bikes and such, and you were both alright enough with cars. 

Your brother let out a hum, looking over the motorbikes with a thoughtful look before turning to you and gaining not only your attention but the others as well, "yo, if we do do that later on. think you can..." He motions to the motorbikes and makes a vague gesture. Your eyes narrow at him in a deadpanned look, he rolled his eyelights, "don't give me that look dumbass. i'm talkin' 'bout celeragi 4.0." He snapped and your digital eyes turn into exclamation marks.

"PERHAPS. YOU SHOULD HAVE OUTRIGHT SAID IT INSTEAD OF DOING THAT MORONIC GESTURE THAT MEANT ABSOLUTELY NOTHING." You reply, somewhat distracted as you thought more on what your brother had truly meant. "I'M NOT SURE IF I COULD, THE TECHNOLOGY HERE ISN'T THE SAME, COULD _YOU_ EVEN DO ANYTHING WITH THE INNER WORKINGS OF CELARAGI 4.0?" 

He shrugs, "maybe. only if you make the frame and shit. not to mention- hm, i can see where you're unsure about. the bikes here are slimmer, cool looking too but not actually celeragi4.0 material huh? might have to go from scratch. well, not _scratch_ per say but, you could probably do it." He says, and you're honestly surprised with how sure he sounds. It makes you think, _could_ you? Your brother had Prosthesis Sans' abilities, or at least maybe just enough to not fuck up your visor but you... _you_ \- you still weren't sure if you could do your brother's _spinal_ _maintenance_. Not yet.

But... 

You both knew the basics of it, or at least the concepts. And you weren't a slouch when it came to your education and intelligence... _Could_ you figure it out?

"WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU BOTH TALKING ABOUT?" Noir finally exclaimed with a frown, glancing between you and your brother. Blue, Pyrus and Mutt looking curious by his side. "WHAT EXACTLY IS CELERAGI 4.0?!"

You and your brother exchange a brief look before he shrugs and gestures to you making you sigh, "MY APOLOGIES NOIR, CELERAGI IS ONE OF OUR OLD VEHICLES FROM OUR UNIVERSE. IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE BOTH REGULARLY USED FOR TRANSPORT." You tell him, thinking to the sophisticated piece of junk that Prosthesis Papyrus and Sans drove around between long distances. "SPECIFICALLY IT WAS OUR VERSION OF YOUR BIKES HERE, BUT MORE HEAVIER, AND WELL- LESS GROUNDED I SUPPOSE. IT HAS VARIOUS PREVIOUS VERSIONS OF ITSELF, CURRENTLY WE BOTH HAD VERSION 3.9, WHAT MY BROTHER IS ENTAILING IS IF I COULD POSSIBLY CREATE A CELERAGI 4.0 VERSION WHILE WE STAY HERE." 

Immediately their interest in it grew, " _less grounded?_ " Mutt repeated, not even feigning disinterest because this clearly interested him. "whaddaya mean by that?"

Chine smirked, tapping on the wheels of a nearby bike. "means that it didn't have these wheels. not really anyway." He chuckled, grin wide and eyelights bright. He's certainly in a good mood, but you can't blame him because the thought of the Prosthesis vehicles always excited you as well. Or well, _most_ things from your Prosthesis AU excited you, its technology especially.

"IT DIDN'T? THEN HOW DID IT GET ANYWHERE?" Blue quickly questioned, sockets wide and sparkling with curiosity. "IF YOU DIDN'T USE WHEELS THEN HOW-"

"OUR UNIVERSE'S TECHNOLOGY IS VASTLY DIFFERENT FROM YOURS BLUE, IT'S BEEN MADE CLEAR WITH MY VISOR AS WELL AS A FEW OTHER THINGS. THE TRANSPORTATION FROM OUR UNIVERSE IS RARELY SO GROUNDED BY WHEELS, AT LEAST FOR MAJORITY OF THE TIME, THE MOST EFFICIENT WAY OF TRANSPORT IS BY AIR." You say, as understanding dawned on their faces, "CELERAGI 3.9 IS A GLIDERBIKE. AND TO MY GREAT PRIDE, IT IS ONE OF THE FASTEST BIKES OF OUR UNIVERSE." You say, unable to repress the proud smile on your face.

"a _glider_ bike?" Mutt echoed, sockets actually wide other than their usually hooded state.

"yeah, a gliderbike. most vehicles back home don't have wheels. glidin' vehicles 're more common." Chine explained, looking between the other motorcycles in the garage. "most of them anyway, there's still tons of transports that use wheels but majority of our transportation is glide/flyin' based." 

"WOAH." Blue and Pyrus breathed, amazed and no doubt trying to imagine it all- flying cars, bikes, the like. 

"but how does it work? what's the power behind it all?" Mutt questioned, the hidden scientific side that he and the others like him emerging as he thought of it as well. "you mention that our bikes here are slimmer, how bulky is the celeragi and how fast can it go?"

"IT IS MUCH BULKIER THAN THESE ONES." You tell him, "IT'S ACTUALLY CLOSER TO A SMALL CAR, HOWEVER IT ONLY HAS TWO COILS THAT LET IT GLIDE. AND IT IS POWERED BY BOTH FLARE AND FROST OILS, THEY'RE QUITE VOLATILE AGAINST EACH OTHER HOWEVER THE STEAM PROVIDED BY THESE TWO OILS IS QUITE POWERFUL AND IF UTILIZED CORRECTLY IN A STEAM CHAMBER OF MAGICALLY ENCASED IRON IT SUFFICIENTLY POWERS THE CELERAGI AND LETTING IT CLOCK IN OVER 445 MILES PER HOUR OR 716 KILOMETERS PER HOUR. AND THAT IS ON FLARE AND FROST OILS ALONE, IT ENTIRELY CHANGES ONCE WE ADD IN CARBON DUST INTO THE CHAMBER, IT SKYROCKETS BEYOND- THOUGH I HAVE YET TO TAME THE SIDE EFFECT OF IT OVERLOADING THE CELERAGI'S MOTOR AND COMBUSTING ONE OF THE COILS. THE CARBON DUST IS SIMPLY TOO POWERFUL EVEN AT SMALL DOSAGES... Perhaps If I Change The Source Of Carbon? Rework The Frost And Flare Pipes Into The Steam Chamber Along With The Carbon Ventilator... Readjust The Power Voltage? But The Coils Might Not Be Able To Handle The Shift..." You mumble, mind whirling as idea after idea fills your skull, unable to realize the fact you were mumbling to yourself with a thoughtful look on your face. Your digital eyelights turning into a big loading circle with three dots in the middle.

You don't see the way the others are staring at you, your brother included. 

You were mumbling mechanical jargon that most of them couldn't really understand, your brother however understood most of it.

You were mumbling idea after idea on how to improve the state of a fictional steampunk-esque glidingcycle that previously didn't exist as if it did and that you were ultimately knowledgeable over the matter. 

Prosthesis Papyrus was a mechanical engineer that took pride over the Celeragi. 

You weren't, sure you were interested in mechanics but not to _this_ point, you weren't as knowledge as Prosthesis Papyrus.

At least, you weren't _before_.

You _now_ had the intimate knowledge of Papyrus' mechanical expertise, everything he knew, you now knew yourself whether you knew it or not.

It predictably comes in handy.

* * *

Everyone had different terms of knowledge, different gauges of intelligence and a certain mastery over specific skills.

A person could flourish in artistic knowledge but be absolute crap in mathematical knowledge, and likewise another could be one of the best mathematicians ever but have no knowledge whatsoever in the culinary aspect of life.

There would always be someone more knowledgeable than you in the world when it came to something else. That was something that Mutt very well knew even before being met with alternate versions of him and his brother. Despite essentially being the 'same' skeletons, they were still their own persons with varied skills and knowledge, before and even still now sometimes, Mutt often took comfort in that whenever he thought more about his insignificant existence. That he was just a poorly mirrored reflection of a better 'Papyrus', there were plenty of better versions of himself now surrounding him and his brother.

He doesn't think of that often anymore, and certainly not in such a pessimistic and depressing way. Not often at least.

Listening to the mumbles of Visor, he's reminded of it though as he pays attention to the somewhat confusing mechanical jargon that comes out of the other skeleton's mouth, it's not a bad thought this time though as Mutt sees the way Visor's digital eyelights are nowhere in sight and replaced with a loading circle symbol with three disappearing and reappearing dots within said circle. 

_Visor was an engineer_ , Mutt thought to himself with surprise. At the very least, he was some kind of specialized mechanic that dealt with whatever the hell was going on in their fucked up universe. Something that was still alarming to Mutt, but thinking into it, it would make some sense if one of the brothers were skilled but out of the both of them Mutt had admittedly been expecting _Chine_ to be the one more knowledgeable in the matter. It was how it typically was, one brother would contribute help in repairing the machine, easing the workload and hopefully getting closer in fixing the damned thing in the long run.

Sometime after the shopping trip, they would have asked them for help. Mutt admitted that he'd been expecting to asking help from _Chine_ because he somewhat 'fitted' the now stereotypical factor of being knowledgeable or helpful when it came to the machine. 

He hadn't exactly expected Visor to show potential or knowledge about it.

Mutt felt strangely shameful for thinking about it with stereotypes- he couldn't have helped it though. Typically between them all, only one brother would be particularly helpful for the repair and progress of the machine that brought them all there, the only exception to that had been both G and Green. 

And now maybe Chine and Visor?

Or was simply Visor the one who could deal with the machine?

From how he was muttering about 're-adjusting the pipeway of the frost oils alongside the flare oils', Mutt was beginning to think that yes. Visor was going to be the one who was going to help them out on the machine. Mutt didn't even know what frost and flare oils were, they were probably something common in the other skeleton's universe but he had to admit, he was now very curious. 

His inner engineer was _very_ curious. Before he could even think of actually asking Visor, Chine interrupted the other's mutterings... by kicking him straight at the shins. Mutt had to wince, that did _not_ seem like a soft kick whatsoever. 

Visor stumbled, letting out a pained yelp, "YOU FUCKER, WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR?!" Visor swore out angrily, holding his shin and orange digital eyes back and glaring at his brother. 

Chine didn't bother hiding his rather cruel snicker and smirk, "you were talkin' jargon bro." He tells him, "it was gettin' annoyin'." 

Visor's face flooded with color, "AH. I- AHEM-" He coughed, nervously adjusting his jacket standing straight even though it was clear he was favoring one leg over the other. Mutt glanced over to Blue and Pyrus, sighing at their complicated faces. "MY APOLOGIES, I WAS- Lost. In My Thoughts." He finished softly.

"'s fine." Mutt told him, smiling reassuringly at his alternate, "it was interesting. you seem to know your stuff, i have tons of questions if you don't mind me askin'." Like what frost and flare oils were, and carbon dust- well, he _knew_ what carbon dust is but what exactly did it specifically do when it was combined with the steam of said oils? And he wanted to hear more about the Celeragi. And gliding vehicles, how different were they from hovering or flying?

Visor visibly blinked and then beamed at him, Mutt subtly tugged his hood lower as Visor smiled brightly at him. "AH! I DEFINITELY DO NOT MIND! PLEASE DO ASK YOUR QUESTIONS!!" 

Before he could actually ask anything again though, he was once more interrupted, but this time by Noir. "AS INTERESTING AS THIS SOUNDS," He starts roughly and contrary to his words, he doesn't seem interested at all. He was never the one for mechanics after all, Red would probably be just as interested in hearing out Visor with him though. "DO REMEMBER WE HAVE SOMEWHERE TO BE. THE MALL HAS JUST OPENED AND I'D RATHER ARRIVE THERE WHERE THERE WILL BE LESS PEOPLE THERE."

"OH YEAH! WE HAVE TO GO BUY YOU BOTH CLOTHES! THE MALL SHOULD DEFINITELY BE OPEN NOW!" Blue gasped, suddenly reminded that they were in the garage for a _reason_. 

Oh right. Shopping, Mutt had almost forgot about that. Whoops.

"IT SEEMS THAT YOUR QUESTIONS MAY HAVE TO WAIT MUTT." Pyrus said with an apologetic look on his face.

He simply shrugged, not even disappointed- or well, maybe he was a _little_ disappointed. Just a little. "i can wait pyrus." Shopping came first though. "later we can talk then visor." He and Noir head over to the black parked car, owned obviously by Noir. 

"IT'S ALRIGHT." Visor sighed before he paused, "OR I CAN RIDE WITH YOU AND WE CAN CONVERSE ON THE WAY TO THE MALL." He said, gaining their attention once more. "WOULD IT BE ALRIGHT IF WE DID THAT? HONESTLY I'D RATHER RIDE WITH YOU THAN _THIS_ ASSHOLE." He said with clear annoyance, gesturing to his brother who deadpans at him. 

"bitch." 

"TWAT."

"ER, ARE YOU SURE? I MEAN, IF NOIR IS ALRIGHT WITH YOU RIDING HIS CAR ALONG WITH MUTT..." Pyrus trailed off, looking at said skeletons. 

Mutt himself was surprised, but was definitely not against it. "i'm cool with it if noir's cool with it."

Noir took in a deep breath and exhaled tiredly, "FINE. SO LONG AS WE CAN GET TO THE MALL FASTER." He conceded, motioning Visor to come over. 

Visor grinned, not hesitating whatsoever to join them. Chine simply rolled his eyelights and without another word headed to Blue and Pyrus, "well at least the car ride's gonna be peaceful." He said casually, as if them separating was a regular thing. 

And maybe it is.

Mutt though felt a bit apprehensive all of a sudden, because he remembers the first few weeks in this universe. The feeling of dread whenever he and his brother had to separate for more than even a minute... They clearly didn't feel that, they didn't seem to care-

Mutt shook his head, it wasn't his business. He reminded himself, he and his Sans were the most lenient to let Chine and Visor's admittedly alarming relationship be. Brothers were brothers, and though they acted rough to each other there were moments where they clearly cared for each other. Those moments were worth the rough moments and actions, it was how he and his Sans were before after all and how Noir and Red were.

Emphasis on the were.

Living in this peaceful universe, which was so much better than their old one admittedly softened them much to his brother's disgust and secret relief. They didn't have to be so rough, they didn't have to act...

All Chine and Visor needed was time.

And maybe a little push sure, but all they needed was to be a bit more comfortable in showing affection around others. 

Maybe.

That was all Mutt could think and hope for the moment anyway.

It didn't matter for now, he and Visor entered Noir's car, both of them sitting at the back seat of the sleek vehicle and immediately Mutt asked him the questions that had built in his head the moment he heard Visor's mechanical muttering.

Noir was subjected with a conversation he couldn't really understand in the backseats of his very own car, he was predictably very annoyed by it but didn't say anything whatsoever as he focused on driving towards the mall.

* * *

Leaving through the gates of the skeleton property, you watch from the back seat of Pyrus' car as the trees zoomed by. You were actually leaving the property and heading into a populated area. 

It was weird to leave from such a luxurious and forest area. 

You and your brother have never been to an area like this before. You've both just lived in a suburban-esque area for your childhood and then moved into the city after you gained your brother's custody from your foster family...

 _"I can take care of him, I have a job- a stable job. And an apartment, it's small for now, but it's enough for us both." You tell them calmly, repressing the underlying fury as you stare them straight in the eye. The papers sprawled between them on the desk as you stand before the two adults. "Just sign the papers and let me leave with my brother." Get him out of this suffocating place, let them_ both _be free from_ them _._

 _"It's only been a month since you've left," She replied and you almost correct her, 'Since we_ kicked you out _'. "How in the world did you get a job and an apartment in that time?"_

_ You smile, it's unkind and only just polite, "You know how prepared I am."  _

_ He laughs, you've always wanted to punch him in the throat since his laughter grated your ears but you're not going to. "Thatt'a boy." He smirks, approval plastered on his face. "Fine, that's one less mouth to feed anyway." You hold back the urge to sigh in relief, to let release the tension from your shoulders- but you know that this was just  _ one _hurdle over. The rest..._

"-INE? CHINE!" You jolt, snapped out of your memories- you don't remember your foster father and mother's names or faces, but the memory itself was clear other than that and now there's lingering fury in your stomach- and look away from the window to look straight into concerned bright blue eyelights. "OH! I'M SORRY FOR STARTLING YOU CHINE, BUT YOU SEEMED LOST IN THOUGHT AND I WANTED YOU TO KNOW THAT WE'LL BE AT THE MALL SOON. WE'VE LEFT THE FOREST AREA." 

You wave off his concern and apologetic look, "'s fine blue, my mind wandered. it's nice to know that... where do we live anyway by the way? there was a lot of trees and as far as i know there's no one else around." It was strange, how the mansion and the cottage was all that was there- it wasn't that unheard of to having a mansion and or cottage in the woods with no one else for miles but... that seemed like a horror-movie kind of deal. 

Not that you're complaining, you love horror movies remember? But still, it was still weird. 

Pyrus beamed, glancing at you from the rearview mirror before focusing back on the road. "AH HOW COULD I FORGET TO SAY IT- WE LIVE AT THE BASE OF MOUNT EBOTT, ON THE OTHERSIDE TO WHERE THE BARRIER OF THE UNDERGROUND PREVIOUSLY WAS." He explained with Blue nodding to his explanation, you had to blink though.

Really? Now that you thought about it, there _was_ a mountain nearby but- you didn't think it'd be _the_ Mt. Ebott. "oh. huh... how'd you get the house? did you build it there or..." It was cool where it was located, but it was still kind of weird. 

"AH! WE BOUGHT IT FROM IT'S PREVIOUS OWNER! THE COTTAGE AS WELL OF COURSE. THEY WERE A LOVELY OLD COUPLE THAT SIMPLY COULD NOT KEEP THE MANSION, SO WE GLADLY BOUGHT IT OFF FROM THEIR HANDS AND RENOVATED IT AS WELL AS THE COTTAGE TO OUR TASTES!" 

"huh. nice." How lucky. You mean, how likely was it that there was a reclusive elderly couple willing to sell their property to living breathing skeleton monsters? 

You were being skeptical, but truly you considered the fact they managed to get their home like that as great luck and at least they had a sizable, livable, comfortable homes. 

"HEY CHINE..." Blue started, gaining your attention once more, you look at him and he continues, "I'D LIKE TO ASK, IF THAT'S OKAY WITH YOU- ABOUT YOUR UNIVERSE." 

When you blink and look at him in surprise he quickly backtracks, "I-IT'S FINE IF YOU DON'T WANT ME TO ASK ANYTHING! I WAS JUST CURIOUS AND-" "yeah sure. go right ahead and ask blue, you too pyrus, i'll answer whatever question i feel like answerin' so don't expect every question to be answered a'ight?" They're both clearly surprised, you even feel the car jerk slightly.

"OH! ALRIGHT! THANK YOU CHINE!"  
"I WON'T ASK AS MUCH SINCE I AM FOCUSING ON DRIVING RIGHT NOW BUT VERY WELL CHINE! IF YOU DO NOT MIND!" 

You lean back against the comfy backseat of the car, "fire away."

Blue of course is the one to ask first, and his first question surprises you and Pyrus both. He was really being unpredictable right now wasn't he?

"WHAT YOU AND YOUR BROTHER SAID YESTERDAY, ABOUT THE WAR? YOUR WAR. HOW LONG HAS IT REALLY BEEN GOING ON? YOUR BROTHER SAID A FEW YEARS BUT..." He trails off, his usually bright face grimacing but look at you with a strange look of strength.

This Blue- no, this _Underswap Sans_ certainly was surprising. 

He seemed like the usual marshmallow that you've always thought him about or seen a lot about him. He was childish to an extent but not naive or one to be underestimated. 

You hum, "should be 'bout four or five years by now." If you were thinking about the timeline of Prosthesis AU correctly. It was hard to say about the state of the AU when you _weren't in_ said AU. But the general 'present' timeline of the AU was around four or five-ish years into the war. "it's hard to say, but officially it should be four, non-officially? probably longer." 

Blue's look of convicted strength doesn't waver even when his grimace deepens, "OH... WHY DID IT START?"

"WAS IT BECAUSE OF, IT WAS ADVERSIA RIGHT? VISOR SAID IT WAS A COUNTRY AIMING FOR WORLD DOMINATION." Pyrus added in- Blue wasn't the only one being surprising.

Really, these two usually seen cinnamonbon skeletons were being so serious and asking such questions... 

Well, they asked, and you had the knowledge. "y'er right 'bout that. adversia started it under the a claim of self defense from monidus, they said that monidus started it first, that they were the ones who attacked first."

"WHAT?" Both Blue and Pyrus exclaimed, both whirling around to look at you with wide-eyed sockets. Fortunately for you three, Pyrus had to stop because of a redlight- oh hey, you were in civilization! There were shops outside the window of the car, streets, other cars, humans, monsters, walking around... "BUT YOU SAID ADVERSIA STARTED IT FIRST! BUT IF MONIDUS ATTACKED FIRST-" 

"that's what they _say_ blue." You interrupt him. "it's what adversia said when questioned about their actions in the war. it's their excuse, their cover up for the world domination part of their plans. it's what they said to gain support from other countries and such. if you ask monidus, it was adversia who attacked first before callin' wolf and pointin' at them as the wolf." 

"O-OH." Blue and Pyrus deflated a bit, but they were obviously processing the information as all three of them sat in silence in the car for a bit. "WHAT... WHAT WAS THE FIRST ATTACK? IT HAD TO BE SOMETHING FOR BOTH COUNTRIES TO CLAIM THAT EACH OTHER HAD ATTACKED FIRST."

You smile at them, they're taken back from it- it was a grim smile. A deep, tired smile that really resembled their brother's old smiles back in the underground, the life-draining smile that was unable to hide how exhausted their respective brothers were actually were.

"the first attack that had both adversia an' monidus claimin' each other had attacked first... was the deaths of the prince of monidus an' their human adopted child that was the progeny of a previous beloved president of adversia durin' the attempted renewal of the peace treaty between both countries."

The death of Asriel and Chara Dreemurr.

It was the main and official thing that kickstarted the war in Prosthesis AU. 

During the peace treaty between Adversia and Monidus, both children were killed due to an unseen assassin. Adversia accused Monidus of killing Chara, the child of one of their beloved but deceased presidents. Monidus denied it heavily, how could they kill them? They had been adopted by the royal family! And not only that, _their_ prince, sweet little Asriel had been killed as well! 

From there it all escalated into the full out war.

It was silent in the car before Blue and Pyrus exploded- figuratively of course, but words were stumbling out of their mouths and they were talking over each other. You wince and try to speak over them.

"W-WHA-" "pyrus" "BUT THAT'S-" "pyrus, blu-" "HOW COULD-" _BEEP BEEP BEEEEEEEP!!_ " _pyrus! blue!_ " You finally shout as the three of you hear the sharp honks behind you. "the light is green pyrus. i think our traffic systems are similar enough in both universes to say that we're good to go on the road." Pyrus jolted and immediately turned back to the wheel.

"AH! MY APOLOGIES!" Pyrus exclaimed as his car was once more on the move on the road, the honks behind them decreased as they continued on. As the driver, Pyrus couldn't look at you anymore- other than glancing at you frequently at the rearview mirror, but he needed to focus more on the road. Blue however, since he was sitting at the front seat was more than capable of meeting your gaze. 

"Why Were They Killed? Who Killed Them? It Couldn't Be Monidus Right?" Blue questioned, a deep frown on his face. 

You shrug, "no one knows who _exactly_ killed them." Lie. "but it wasn't really monidus." Truth. "as for why... well, _something_ legitimate had to start the war." And wasn't that the truth? 

_Something_ had to start the war.

When you and your brother decided to make Prosthesis AU set in a war-era, you both had thought that the typical racism and paranoia about the monsters had been a _bit_ boring. Sure there _would_ be racism in it because face it, racism would _always_ exist when it came to life but the cataclysm of the official war _had_ to be something big. 

So why not the death of two infamous children?

You had been inspired from Fullmetal Alchemist, the Ishvalan war had been started when Envy had disguised himself as an Amestrian soldier and killed an Ishvalan child- from there it was just putting it into the AU itself.

Another sin to add on your back.

Prosthesis AU had been something of pride between you and your brother. You both worked on it together, bouncing ideas at each other, implementing those ideas, creating one thing out of another- now? Now you regret almost _everything_ you've done. 

You don't regret the technology, most of it was cool like the HolCog and such. But the rest? The bad moments of Prosthesis AU? You and your brother's _permanent_ disabilities? 

Prosthesis AU had been something of pride between you and your brother. Now, it was almost nothing but a work made of shame and regret.

"so." You say before Blue or Pyrus could even say anything else, "we close to the mall now? what's it like here? how's everything?" 

They both hesitate but thankfully Pyrus smiles brightly at you through the mirror, "WE ARE NEARLY THERE, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO SEE IT NOW IN FACT! THE MALL IS QUITE BIG SO PLEASE STAY CLOSE TO US WHEN WE ENTER! AND AS FOR WHAT IT IS LIKE HERE, IT'S JUST GREAT! THERE'S A LOT OF MONSTER SHOPS IN THE MALL NOW! YOU CAN FIND ALMOST EVERYTHING IN EBOTT'S SUPERMALL!" 

You lean towards the window and look and- he was right. You could see the giant interconnected buildings that was 'Ebott's Super Mall'. Gigantic colorful and bold letters of 'ESM' plastered to the very top of the mall and stamped to a stone header right at the vehicle entrance of the super mall. 

"THE SUPERMALL HAS FOUR WONDERFUL FLOORS! THOUGH THE SMALLER BUILDING ONLY HAS THREE, BUT IT IS STILL QUITE WONDERFUL!" Blue exclaimed excitedly, motioning to the building. "OH PYRUS LOOK! A FREE SPOT RIGHT OVER THERE!" He pointed out to said free spot- there were three free parking spots, Noir's car would no doubt claim a spot beside them. 

Scooting to the car door, you wait until Pyrus was properly parked to get out of the car, stretching lightly as you exited. "how long was the ride? i wasn't paying attention." You ask Blue as he got out as well. 

"HMM, WELL AT THE SPEED WE WERE GOING, IT USUALLY JUST TAKES JUST 25-ISH MINUTES TO GET TO THE MALL FROM OUR PROPERTY? DEPENDING ON WHICH ROAD WE TAKE OF COURSE. SO ABOUT 25 MINUTES." You nod, taking that in. You really had to pay more attention to where you were going, the ride back you were going to make sure you remembered which road the car took. 

It would probably come in handy.

"WHAT HAPPENED EARLIER ON PYRUS?! THE LIGHT WAS GREEN, WHY DID YOU NOT GO IMMEDIATELY?! I SPENT THREE MINUTES WASTING TIME HONKING AT YOUR PATHETIC CAR!" Noir snarled the moment he exited his car which was firmly parked to their left. 

Your brother piped in as he exited, thankfully exiting on the other side of the car from you, "TO BE SPECIFIC HE SPENT TWO MINUTES AND FIFTEEN SECONDS HONKING AT YOUR CAR." Mutt snickers underneath his breath as Noir sent your brother a withering look. He merely smiles back amicably, unbothered by said look.

You can't help your own snicker, biting your tongue to stop when Noir glanced at you. 

Pyrus coughed, "I AM QUITE SORRY ABOUT THAT NOIR, WE WERE A BIT DISTRACTED AND DIDN'T NOTICE THE STOPLIGHT CHANGING TO GREEN." 

Noir scowled at him, raising a brow at him, "DISTRACTED WITH WHAT?"

"oh you know, discussion about the war back home and how it was started." You say with a shrug, causing both Fell versions of Papyrus to freeze. Your brother pauses and sends you a disapproving look, you shrug again at it. "don't look at me like that, they were the ones who asked." 

"WE DID." Blue confirmed to Visor, "WE ASKED FIRST. THOUGH IT WAS... TROUBLING, WE DON'T EXACTLY REGRET IT. IN FACT I AM VERY CURIOUS ABOUT IT AND WOULD LIKE TO ASK MORE BUT WE SHOULD REALLY FOCUS MORE ON GETTING YOU TWO CLOTHES. MAYBE WE CAN TALK MORE ABOUT IT BACK HOME! THAT IS, IF YOU BOTH DON'T MIND THAT IS." He says, giving both of you understanding looks.

You shift in place, fiddling with the end of your black scarf. "'s fine with me. bro?" You look at your brother who hesitates but sighs and nods, he doesn't say anything else- he's probably feeling the guilt too but unlike you, he was the one who always showed more about it. You were the one best at compartmentalizing and not caring in the moment after all. 

Was that a good thing? Probably not, but boy was it handy.

"well there you have it."

"ALRIGHT. NOW CAN WE STOP STANDING AROUND LIKE IMBECILES AND GET INSIDE THE MALL NOW?" Noir phrased it like a question but it sounded more of a demand really.

"i dunno, can we?" Mutt questioned lazily with a smile.

Noir narrows his sockets at him, "DO NOT TEST ME MUTT. COME ON, LET'S GO!" He urged, going as far as to push Mutt into Visor and towards the mall.

You laugh as your brother sputters slightly and walk after the three alongside Pyrus and Blue.

* * *

"HERE WE ARE! MOUNT EBOTT SUPER MALL!" Pyrus exclaimed extravagantly before Visor and Chine, both skeletons looking around with interesting eyelights. 

With four floors and various, differing shops and stores- the mall was certainly a place to be in. There were quite a few people around, both monster and humans alike but thankfully not as much as it usually had since the mall had only just opened about more than an hour or so ago. Which is exactly why they wanted to arrive early, to avoid a rush of people in the mall. They didn't want to overwhelm their two newest house guest after all- they had plenty of experience of that for the rest of them.

Noir and Red nearly attacked everyone around them the first time they came to the mall, overwhelmed with the amount of monsters and humans surrounding them in a new place they had no familiarity with whatsoever. 

And then _eventually_ , Axe and Crooks...

Yeah, they decided that they would go early on to the mall whenever new skeletons were inevitably added into their abode. That way it was both easier and safer for everyone involved.

"woah." Chine breathed, looking around, "never been in a big ass mall like this." He admitted to which Visor had nodded his agreement.

It made Pyrus wonder a bit on what kind of malls that existed in their universe. Though that thought connected it back to the earlier subject of the start of the war which _still_ upset him quite a bit. He shook his head and beamed at them both. "IT IS QUITE BIG INDEED! THANKFULLY THERE'S ALWAYS A MAP SOMEWHERE AROUND ANYWHERE OF THE MALL. AND THE MAIN PLAZA IS QUITE EASILY FOUND SO IF YOU'RE LOST, JUST ALWAYS HEAD TO THERE!" 

"well said pyrus." Mutt complimented causing Pyrus to smile gratefully at him, "WHY THANK YO-" "i'd definitely give you a round of _a plaza_." _Snap. Wink._

Chine immediately chuckled while the rest of the Papyrus' plus one Sans groaned and complained to Mutt. Mutt just basked in the complaints, sharing a smirk with Chine who was grinning widely.

Pyrus saw this and quickly exclaimed, " _JOKES ASIDE-_ " He insisted greatly and emphasized sternly, "LET US GO TOWARDS ONE OF THE CLOTHING STORES! THERE ARE MULTIPLE STORES WHICH YOU BOTH CAN CHOOSE FROM! IF YOU WANT TO FIND SOMETHING SPECIFIC PLEASE LET US KNOW AND WE'LL HELP YOU TRY TO FIND IT!" He remembered on how Chine wanted to find a furred hood like what Mutt, Axe, G and Red were wearing. And Visor wanted a sweater correct? The rest of them already knew a few stores that sold good quality clothing that they'd like. Mutt especially with the furred hood, he would no doubt show Chine the store where there were good quality hoods that sold for a good price.

"VERY WELL, LEAD THE WAY PYRUS, BLUE." Visor said, motioning them to go on. 

Noir interrupted before they could leave, "WE SHALL MEET WITH YOU IN A BIT. MUTT AND I HAVE CERTAIN ITEMS TO PURCHASE FIRST, WE'LL LET YOU KNOW WHEN WE ARE FINISHED." Both skeletons nodded while both Visor and Chine looked curious about what Noir and Mutt were going to buy. 

"it's nothin' much. i'm putting in a big order for bolts and shit from a good hardware store here in the mall, y'know, since we have a busted hunk of junk in the basement." Mutt told the two curious brothers, sating their curiosity. "noir's picking something he previously ordered, don't really know what it is though." He shrugged, glancing at his alternate.

Noir puffed his chest out, crossing his arms with a scoff. "YOU WILL HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE! NOW BUZZ OFF! WE HAVE OUR OWN THINGS TO DO AND WE'RE WASTING TIME STANDING HERE!" He exclaimed, uncaring to the looks he garnered from the other humans and monsters. He turned on his heels and confidently strutted off towards wherever he was aiming to go. 

Mutt sighed, "later." He lazily saluted at the four skeletons and left in the same direction as Noir. 

"WELL WE'LL SEE THEM BOTH LATER! FOR NOW, LET US COMMENCE IN BUYING A WARDROBE FOR YOU BOTH!" Blue declared, taking Visor's hand while Pyrus took Chine's hand, "ONWARDS!"

"ONWARDS!" Pyrus repeated with a wide grin as they began to drag their respective hand hostage towards their intended destination.

"B-BLUE WAI-" "o-oi pyrus hold up-"

* * *

With both exuberant versions of Sans and Papyrus dragging you and your brother towards the clothing store, it really doesn't take long for you to arrive at it.

It was a thankfully monster friendly store, even had a couple of monster employees being employed. They and a few other human employees seemed to be familiar enough with Blue and Pyrus because they greeted the two skeletons with warm politeness, giving you and your brother a curious and somewhat wary look but keeping peak worker politeness that really impressed you. 

"THIS IS ONE OF THE STORES WE REGULARLY GO TOO, EVERYONE BACK HOME HAS VISITED IT AND PURCHASED AT LEAST MORE THAN ONE PIECE OF CLOTHING FROM HERE." Blue informs you after shopping, which made sense. With how much the dimensional machine seemed to malfunction and drag in a pair of alternates who had near to nothing else but the clothes they had on their backs, the employees must have been seeing a lot of Sans and Papyrus.

"hey, do we have a limit of clothes we should buy? and like, a money limit?" Your brother questions as the four of you stand among various different types of clothing. He asks a fairly good question, you're reminded that this was all on Pyrus and Blue's own money, you really need to figure out a way to pay them back monetarily. 

Well, you already have a _few_ ideas- the drive towards the mall was _very_ interesting. You and Mutt had spent it talking mechanics, mostly you answering his questions, the first question having been what exactly Frost and Flare oils were.

They were special oils from Prosthesis AU, from the names alone you could figure out what exactly they were and _maybe_ how they were made. Fire and Ice magic were heavily involved, both oils weren't typically common and very carefully handled since Flare oil was as easily combustible as you'd think they'd be and Frost oil was practically liquid nitrogen, but magic. Really, really strong and volatile magic.

If you covered something in frost oil that wasn't resistant to it or very strong like, wood for example, it would immediately freeze. And flare oil- well, it was as combustible as you'd think yes but that wasn't the only thing. The temperature of the oil was extremely hot. To the point of setting fire to the previously used example of wood the moment the oil touched the flammable object.

Let it be said that you and your brother thought _many_ an interesting things for Prosthesis AU. Frost and Flare oils were just a minuscule part of it. 

Also you realized that despite having the capability of rebuilding the Celeragi, which by the way _holy fucking **shit** that was **awesome**_ \- you really couldn't because Undertale _wasn't_ Prosthesis AU. The items you'd need for a fully functioning Celeragi simply didn't exist in this universe which was a bummer and sad realization that came to you when Mutt pointed out that they didn't have anything like the oils and such in the universe. 

No matter, you'd think of something else _and_ you'd be able to do it because Prosthesis Papyrus' vast knowledge and skill was something you had now.

You felt guilty about it but you could not for the life of you, repress the utter excitement of being capable of something you never could before- you weren't a mechanic like Papyrus was before. You had a good grasp on it, but the knowledge that you had now, combined with the knowledge you have of Prosthesis...

You were _definitely_ going to repay Pyrus, Blue, all the other skeletons with your newfound skill.

Prosthesis Papyrus would agree with you. You think and hope.

"DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE MONEY LIMIT FOR NOW! BUT YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY CONSIDER GETTING MORE THAN A FEW WARMER CLOTHES SINCE IT IS CURRENTLY SEPTEMBER!" Pyrus reassured and advised. Oh yeah, you both hadn't asked the date, so it was September huh? 

Blue grinned widely as he bounced in place, "IT'S ALMOST OCTOBER! SOON ALL THE LEAVES WILL CHANGE COLOR!" He cheered, his excitement for that infects you slightly and you smile. 

"IS THAT SO? WELL WE BETTER START LOOKING THEN." You say, looking over the various clothes. You weren't really going to look for anything that out there- or particularly expensive. You'd rather just get what you needed, maybe something you wanted but mostly what you needed; a couple of thin shirts and comfy shorts, thicker shirts, etc.

Pyrus helps you since obviously you were both the same size, you actually didn't know what size Papyrus actually was- from either AU. But you make sure to remember as you hold up a shirt that seemed nice, simple and comfortable. You were going to buy more clothes in the future after all, but right now you'd just get what you needed. You had ample time to build your wardrobe.

Blue was helping out your brother for the same obvious reasons. It was rather peaceful, you and your brother were too busy trying to find clothes for yourselves to quip and bitch at each other, not to mention Blue and Pyrus did a good job distracting you both in their quest to help you. 

You laugh when Blue plasters a pink shirt on Chine's chest, Chine taking it in good faith, plasters an identical pink shirt to Blue who preens and flexes even when the pink shirt falls off his chest.

Honestly this is the most fun you've had shopping for clothes, not to mention the most peaceful clothes shopping you've had with your brother. Normally he'd be throwing garish clothes at you and meanly teasing you- well he _still_ does that, he throws you an awfully gaudy pair of denim _womens_ shorts. However instead of being annoyed, you're merely amused as he does the same towards Pyrus and Blue.

It's more amusing with good people around it turns out.

Especially when both Blue and Pyrus take it in stride and laugh with strong 'MWEHEHEH/NYEHEHEH's'.

You merely roll your eyes and shove the shorts back at your grinning brother, flicking his skull.

"hey it just came to me to ask." Your brother suddenly starts after folding a pair of light gray sweatpants and putting it into his almost full basket. He looks over to Pyrus, "i hope you don't mind if i ask pyrus but, how and exactly why is there a machine that brought alternate versions of you and sans into your- well, _this_ universe?" You're not the only one to blink at the question that comes out of your brother's mouth.

Huh that was a good question.

You never really found out what the machine's purpose was, it varied from whatever fic you both read from from time to time. Some fics didn't even have a good reason, Sans had just messed with the machine for the sake of messing with the machine. What would be the reason this time? You can't really see Sans messing with the machine for no actual reason.

Pyrus paused while Blue frowned, "AS CURIOUS AS I AM NOW THAT MY BROTHER HAS ACTUALLY ASKED A GOOD QUESTION, SUCH A RARE THING BY THE WAY, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO ANSWER IF YOU'RE NOT COMFORTABLE WITH IT PYRUS." You tell him, ignoring the middle finger sent your way from your brother. 

"NO! No. I- You Deserve To Know Why You Were Brought Here However Unintentional It Was. But I Have To Ask That You Must Keep The Fact You're From A Different Universe A Secret From Everyone Else- Or More Specifically The Public." Pyrus tells you both quietly, surprising you both. "It Is Not Common Knowledge That There Is A Machine That Brings More Monsters Into Our Universe And We Have Decided To Keep That Not Common Knowledge For Everyone's General Safety."

That... makes sense.

The knowledge of being capable of breaching the wall of the universe and bringing _monsters_ from _other universes_ into _this_ universe- it would certainly make things chaotic. Stars know what would happen if the machine had been replicated by someone... _unsavory_. 

"I See. I- _We_ Are Sorry For Asking Pyrus." You reply just as quietly, Chine nodding in agreement. 

Blue shook his head, "No, It's Fine Visor. We Forgot To Tell You About It."

"it should've occurred to us though. definitely should've been obvious though." Your brother pointed out softly.

Pyrus gave you both a reassuring smile, though there was an underlying tone of somberness that got to you and your brother. "Really It's Fine. At Any Rate, The Reason Why Sans- Er, _My_ Sans, My Brother- Had First Been Messing With 'The Machine' As You All Call It He Was... He Wanted To Find Someone Important To Us Both. Possibly Bring Him Back. Now I Do No Know If You Have Experienced Something Similar But That Someone Was Our Father, A Scientist By The Name Of Dr. Wingdings Gaster. I... Do Not Remember Him Much, But Brother Did. Before You Ask What Happened I'd Be Glad To Explain It To You... Later Though. WE SHOULD REALLY FOCUS ON SHOPPING FIRST! WE STILL HAVE A FEW OTHER STORES TO HIT! THIS STORE IS LOVELY BUT IT DOES NOT HAVE EVERYTHING THAT YOU MIGHT NEED OR WANT!" He exclaimed, suddenly switching his quite somber voice to his usual loud optimistic voice.

You falter from the sudden switch, still processing what Papyrus had just told you.

This confirmed what the machine was.

Sans, Classic, had wanted to find his Gaster and bring him back from wherever he was- the VOID? Did that exist now? 

And in this universe Gaster was the father to both Sans and Papyrus... that...

Gaster...

W.D Gaster, you...

_ You stare at the skeleton before you. There's  _ something _ about him that makes you feel like you know them somehow. _

_"Subject 43-WDP has recognized 0-WDG. His eyelights have turned orange, 0-WDG's subconscious recognizes 43 in turn, his magic has spiked slightly. Increase the dosage just in case."_

_ You ignore the scientists, that was a bad move-  _ never _ ignore the scientists but you can't help yourself. You can't look away from the skeleton before you. '0-WDG', he was- he was like you. Like your brother. Like the others. He was _family _ somehow. _

_"43. Do not get closer to him. Stay where you are and do not move."_

_ You ignore the scientists, bad move bad move, and reach out to the skeleton- He looks so peaceful- They were keeping him  _ asleep- _That was wrong wrong_ wrong-

_ "43, this is your first and only warning. Do  _ not _ get closer to WDG. _

_You have to- he was sleeping- you needed to wake hi-_

_"Sir! Magic readings spiking- This is a stronger reaction than 42-WDS! He cannot approach Gaster or else we'll risk him waking up!"  
"43! Goddamn skeleton filth-"_

_No! No! They're taking you away from him! They can't! He had to wake up, can't they hear him screaming in his sleep?! Can't they see they were _ **killing him?!**

_Your vision blurs._

_You're screaming and throwing bones everywhere._

_Your vision blurs._

_Your brother comforts you after they throw you into your cell, he's crying too._

_Your vision blurs._

_They punish you both._

_Your vision blurs._

_You especially._

_Your vision blurs._

_Your brother cries especially hard afterwards._

_Your vision doesn't blur._

"Visor? Visor Are You Alright?" Your vision blurs- no, it _glitches_ as you suddenly find yourself on your knees between the clothing racks. Pyrus is holding your shoulders- you should be flinching back, you don't like strangers holding you like this but Pyrus wasn't a stranger. Not really. He was- this was okay. "Visor, Visor- Can You Hear Me? Are You Alright?" 

"I-I-I'm-" You flinch at your shaky voice and try to compose yourself and harden your voice. "I'm Fine."

Pyrus doesn't believe you, "Visor," He says oh so softly, cupping your cheek. It's wet. You realize as he continues. "You're Crying."

Oh. It seems that you are.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess who's back with some more _fanart_?  
> it's [Aubri_Kun99](https://twitter.com/IJustWannaCrY9/status/1300605070699106304)!! look at the boys in hawaii shirts! and more!  
> thank you very much Aubri, you're doing our two lovely idiots some justice.  
> i especially love chine asking 'how much porn is on here'  
> the answer to that:  
> more than you'd expect but less than you'd imagine.
> 
> also i took notice that i tend to draw things out. my paragraphs are fucking long and the actual shopping trip hadn't happened till the very end of the chapter and it wasn't even as long as i'd thought it would be.  
> fuck  
> oh well  
> hope you still enjoyed nonetheless, and at least i made things interesting no?  
> also also this is the longest chapter so far as far as i know. it's 8.3k words.
> 
> come pester me at [my tumblr if you want.](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/)


	13. Casual Clothes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'll admit i don't think this chapter is a strong point for me.  
> i think i'm a bit impatient to get the story to go on- i'm not the only one who wants the spinal maintenance to happen already but i'm trying to pace myself and not make it seem too rushed.

* * *

"Chine? Chine Are You Alright?"

Your sockets blink and you're suddenly faced with a concerned looking Blue. "huh?" You reply dumbly as you slowly realize what you were doing, you were on the ground of the aisle between the clothes racks, your hands were suddenly gripping the end of your scarf so tightly that you know that if you weren't wearing gloves or had skin, they'd be pale. You let it go and edge away from Blue. "uh, yeah. yeah i'm- i'm a'ight blue." Your voice was wavering and you wince, what had happened?

Blue looked utterly unconvinced, "Chine." He says, reaching out but stops when you flinch away, "Chine, There Are Tears Coming From Your Eyes." He points out softly to you. 

You are?

You finally realize that yes, your cheeks felt wet. Pressing your palm against one cheek, you look at it afterwards and it comes back obviously wet. "oh." You suck in a deep breath and firmly wipe away the tears, eyelights hardening as you mentally berate yourself- how could you cry in public?! You weren't supposed to cry in public you were- "where's my brother?" You suddenly question Blue who looked hesitant.

"Ah! He Um, He's With Pyrus Over There." He pointed to where the two were, from the gaps of the clothes racks you can see your brother's lower half, kneeling on the ground with Pyrus' lower half closeby. "He Ended Up On His Knees And I Think He's Crying Too." 

You grimace, "well shit. what- what happened?" You can't exactly remember what happened before ending up on the ground and apparently crying like a fucking loser. 

Blue's concerned face pinched, "You Don't Remember?" He questions softly and you shake your head, "... I Am Not Exactly Sure What Happened But You Suddenly Started Crying And Started To Slump On The Ground. Visor As Well. We Were... Talking About Gaster." He had hesitated before reminding you.

That's right, you were talking about Gaster. Or rather, Pyrus was explaining to you on why Classic had worked on the machine in the first place. 

Gaster had been the reason, Classic had wanted to get his own Gaster back from the Void. Or that's all you can assume without hearing all of it from the skeleton himself. 

But that doesn't really explain why you _and_ your brother had ended up crying _in fucking **public**_ and on the floor. 

It doesn't make sense.

_ It doesn't make sense. _

_ Why were the scientists taking you somewhere else instead of the usual room? You hadn't done anything. Was it a new test? You hope not, new tests didn't usually go well.  _

_ You want to be back in your cell with your brother. _

_ They lead you into a new room, it's big and spacious like most of the other rooms with the exception of the cells. But immediately you can tell this room was special. There's a strange tugging in your SOUL and your attention is immediately taken towards the sole other skeleton in the room. _

_ They were so much bigger than you. Were they an adult? You've never seen an adult skeleton monster before.  _

_ They-  _ He _ calls to you even though he's asleep. Strapped there, in that giant glass chamber. _

_ "Subject 42-WDS had recognized 0-WDG. His eyelights are glowing brighter than before, 0-WDG's magic has spiked slightly. Unlike the others, 0-WDG recognizes 42 in his subconscious."  _

_ You try to listen to the scientists, you can't ignore them but you can't help putting most of your attention to 0-WDG. You knew him. You  _ knew _him. He was- like you? Like your brother, and the others but so much _more _ and-_

_ He's screaming. _

_ You can't help but scream with him. _

_ They take you away from him even though you don't want to leave.  _

_ You realize you're crying. And alone.  _

_ They took your brother. _

_ He comes back crying too, you comfort him. _

_ From there everything gets  _ worse.

You wince, a sharp pain rattles around your skull. "so we were." You mumble, you look stare down at your wet palm. "i- sorry 'bout that blue. must've been super fucking confusing when my bro and i ended up crying out of nowhere like weakassed losers." You semi-joke, a bitter smile on your face.

"No!" Blue exclaims, suddenly taking your shoulders in his hands, he winces when you flinch back and quickly shove his hands off of you- _you don't like to be touched_. Not when- not after crying or in public like this. "Do Not Apologize For Something Like This. It Was- _Is_ Rather Concerning But Nothing That Deserves You Calling Yourself A Loser." He replied firmly, looking determinedly at you.

You have to look away from that face he has on, "whatever you say blue." You don't refute even if you wanted to. You just want to get things going on and forget what happened. "no use staying down here." You shift on the ground, declining Blue's offered hand to help you up. You got this.

You got this. You're completely capable of standing up by yourself thanks, you appreciate the offer though Blue.

"oi, bastard, you finish?" You call out to Visor who seemed to still be on the ground with Pyrus. "come on, we're practically done with this store. it's better if we get going and we need you to finish the fuck up." You had enough clothes yeah? At least from this store, there were other stores that Blue and Pyrus wanted to show you right? You spent enough time here.

"Chine About Earlier-" Blue says, looking oh so concerned. You ignore him, looking around for your basket. There it is, fuck it tipped over. You crouch to sloppily fold up the clothes and shove them back into the basket. "Chine..."

"if you don't hurry the fuck up and be done you're going to be lag behind dumbass." You call out loudly, standing up to see Visor finally on his own two feet. Good. "took you long enough bitch."

"SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU PIECE OF SHIT." He replies harshly. You were the only one who could hear the wavering tone of his voice, and the sliver of gratitude- you kickstarted you both moving on after all. No use lingering on the past, you have to keep going. It would benefit you _all_ if you just forgot whatever the fuck happened here.

Crying? Hah, you don't know the meaning. You never cried here in this store. You brother didn't do the same thing.

...

It was fucking strange though. Why the hell did you and your brother end up crying earlier on? Was it because of the mention of Gaster?

That didn't seem right, even if you were both guilty for a lot of things, why the hell did the mention of _Gaster_ sent you two over the edge for an awfully vulnerable moment?

You just, blacked out for a moment and ended up letting the flood out for whatever reason...

Was it..

Was it Sans?

 _Prosthesis_ Sans? 

He and his brother mourned Gaster, and whenever he was mentioned in Prosthesis AU it stoked an indiscernible feeling that only _they_ could feel. 

But you don't ever remember them crying over Gaster like this all of a sudden, not since they were young and escaped.

As adults, they've rarely ever fucking cried. And not for a reason like this...

You press a palm against your forehead as you lean against the counter, ignoring the awkward looking cashier who was nervously ringing up your clothing. Your brother was over by Pyrus and Blue at the other side of the counter discussing money or something. Or at least that was what Visor was trying to do, he was avoiding everything else that Pyrus and Blue were trying to bring up until they just gave up and discussed what Visor wanted to discuss.

Shaking your head, you adjust your scarf so it could temporarily cover your face as you drifted off in thought.

You feel...

You don't really know what you feel to be honest.

There's a strange headache in your skull, and something seems off.

You catalog it away as Visor purposefully scratches your skull roughly to gain your attention, you hiss in pain and glare at him, "WHO'S THE ONE GOING TO FUCKING LAG BEHIND NOW? COME ON, WE'RE HEADING TO THE NEXT STORE." Your brother huffs and starts walking.

Rubbing the part where he scratched, you sneer at his back but follow after him, waving off Blue and Pyrus' looks of concern.

You were fine.

Totally.

* * *

"thanks." Mutt muttered as he gave the cashier a single wave while leaving, the human merely nodded back politely- though it was a warm kind of polite considering he and the others were probably one of the best costumers of this hardware store. 

What can they say, they sold good material and equipment and actually had an idea on what they were doing. 

Plus, the store and the company behind the store was monster-friendly and supportive, they were one of the first ones to hire monsters so it was one top tier place. Of course they didn't completely rely on this one store, that'd be stupid to do so but it was definitely one of the stores they frequented for parts and equipment. Not to mention it didn't sell _everything_ they needed. 

With that done, Mutt took out his phone to check his messages and send a few texts. 

_ You 8:55 AM  
_ hey   
expect the usual and the added shit we needed in like a few days

 _ notbro 8:55 AM  
_ good  
the stupid hunk of junk is officially fucking offline

 _ You 8:55 AM  
_ damn  
is it the inner circuits?

_ notbro 8:57 AM _  
probably  
who the fuck knows with the damn thing  
if it is i think we need to improve the circuit boards again

_ You 8:58 AM _  
that's not going to be fun. you think we have to start from scratch again?

_ notbro 8:58 AM _  
i fucking hope not  
classic's gonna ask alphys for new boards after she handles the new ids

_ You 9:00 AM _  
which will probably take a few days again or did she take our advice and do the smart thing and prepare in advance?

_ notbro 9:03 AM _  
she did the smart thing and prepared in advanced  
she'll be here later on afternoon to hand over chine n visor their new phones and id  
paperwork still gotta process though so there's that  
hop and i are gonna start prying the thing open to see whats the damage

_ You 9:03 AM _  
ah gotcha  
but hey were making progress  
only one pair of bros ended up coming up and we dont have to start completely from scratch  
also i got a feeling that we might be able to get it done faster soon

_ notbro 9:05 _  
thfuck are you talking about mutt?

_ You 9:06 AM _  
ill tell you all about it later  
too much to type out and i dont really wanna leave shit out but holy fuck  
i think we might've gotten the goldmine here red  
that reminds me though i should probably head over towards the others now that im done  
your bro is still off doing whatever the fuck hes doing btw

_ notbro 9:10 AM _  
????  
fucking fine but you better spill everything   
what fucking goldmine like seriously  
and huh i wonder what hes doing  
ah fuck it we'll probably find out later on  
yeah you go off and join the puffs with the shopping  
you did say youd get chine his own digs  
join the fur club

_ You 9:12 AM _  
yeah  
when the hell was there an actual club  
but yeah  
later red

_ notbro 9:13 AM _  
later mutt

Nodding to himself, Mutt tapped on another contact. 

_ You 9:14 AM _  
pyrus  
i'm done with the ordering, where are you guys so i can head over?

_ spaghet 9:15 AM _  
AH! MUTT!  
WE JUST FINISHED WITH THE SECOND STORE AND ARE ABOUT TO HEAD TOWARDS THE NEXT!

_ You 9:18 AM _  
sweet  
hey how bout heading towards hydes instead?

_ speghet 9:19 AM _  
I WAS ABOUT TO ASK WHY BUT I HAVE REMEMBERED THAT YOU HAVE PROMISED CHINE TO FIND A FURRED HOOD OR TWO FOR HIMSELF.  
VERY WELL. IT IS A GOOD STORE AT ANY RATE FOR COMFORTABLE CLOTHING, I AM VERY SURE THAT VISOR CAN FIND GOOD CLOTHING THERE FOR HIMSELF AS WELL!

_ You 9:21 AM _  
yeh  
see you there

_ spaghet 9:21 AM _  
SEE YOU THERE AS WELL MUTT!

One more contact. Underneath Red's contact of ' _notbro_ ' is his brother's contact, Noir. _notbrosbro_.

_ You 9:22 AM _  
hey im heading over to hydes to meet with the others  
send a txt when youre done

Mutt shrugs off the fact that Noir didn't reply, he was probably busy or something. Tucking his phone back into his pocket, he made his way towards Hydes. It was a good clothing store that sold good quality and affordable clothing like furred clothing, leather, stuff like that. 

It was the main store that he, Axe, G and Red got their furred hoods and a few other things as well. They all still had their original clothing and usually wore them but at least they had extras that were around, and people had to wear something different every now again, they were no different.

Hydes wasn't that far from where Mutt was so he was able to walk there at a leisurely pace, only walking a bit faster to avoid the crowds and bigger groups that were starting to appear as more people entered the mall while the day continued. He's only a few minutes late when he arrives and he gives the awaiting skeletons a lazy smile in greeting, "hey."

"YOU ARE A FEW MINUTES LATE!" Blue pointed out with a disapproving look on his face.

"at least it's only a few minutes late." Mutt pointed back to him with a slight grin.

Blue sighed and was about to say something when Chine inadvertently interrupted, "oh fuck this is so soft." He breathed loudly as he caressed a fur coat, already within the store and having honed on to one of the various fur coats that were around. 

Mutt rose a brow at him, did Chine like soft things? His question would be answered later on, yes. Yes he really did.

"There Should Be A Different Size For This Right?" Visor murmured as he himself was over by the sweaters, holding a brown sweater. It was a few sizes too small for him, immediately Pyrus went over to help him. 

Mutt went over to Chine, the Sans was distracted by the fur coat but he no doubt would want to check out the various furred hoods Hydes had, he nodded slightly at the cashier who waved back at him, seemingly unaffected by the sight of a new pair of skeleton that they had never seen before. 

Seeing both Pyrus and Mutt go help out Visor and Chine, Blue sighed again and looked thoughtful before he glanced over to Visor and his eyelights sparkled as he caught Visor holding up a rather interesting sweater. With his attention caught, he went over to join Pyrus and Visor in their sweater hunt.

"wow, just look at them." Chine breathed as he stared at the various furred hoodies that were around. Or just really, the amount of hoodies around _period_. "but which one...?" 

Mutt tugged him over to a certain section of hoodies, "i think these should be able to fit you, over there's the really small ones. g for some strange fucking reason, always picks a few from there, usually leather." He snorted, thinking about the other's strange fashion choices. Who typically wore jackets that weren't totally their sizes in the small range? He could understand if it was bigger than it should be, there was more comfort and movement for that. But G just seemed to prefer really form fitting clothing, the salacious fucking skeleton.

That reminded him, didn't G miss last night's dinner because he was out again? Green must've been so annoyed.

"can't deny it, he can rock the style though." Chine hummed, looking over a dark blue hoodie with white fur lining the hood and sleeves. 

Mutt shrugged, "i guess, still though. i can't see myself wearing shit that he wears... and i like my spacious hoodie. i can hide so much shit in it." He flashed Chine a grin, Chine grinned back with a look of understanding. "how 'bout this one?" He suggested, lifting a light blue hoodie with black fur. 

The smaller skeleton looked at it thoroughly, even trying it on with his coat off before shaking his head. "doesn't feel right, still feels comfy though." He mumbles with a brow and furrowed brows as he took the light blue hoodie off and setting it alongside his coat.

Mutt nodded in understanding even though almost anyone else normal would be befuddled. Mutt understood and sympathized to Chine's plight, it had taken him a while to find a suitable hoodie that was similar enough to his original that he was comfortable enough with it. Granted he had other hoodies that were different to what he usually wore, mostly given as gifts from other people but there was just something comfortable in wearing something that was similar enough to something what you usually were or treasured.

Same thing went for both Axe and Red, G however the ever outlier to their version of the norm, didn't really care as long as it looked good on him and usually he could make it look good. 

"MUTT! LOOK!" He glanced over to see Blue in a light blue sweater with white and grey leaves knitted designs.

Mutt snorted, "ya look good blue. you gonna start wearing sweaters now too?" He questioned, glancing at him then at Visor and Pyrus. Pyrus had been pulled into trying out sweaters as well, Visor smiling in clear amusement as Pyrus posed and laughed. Pyrus was wearing a light red sweater with orange designs while Visor himself was wearing a plain brown sweater. "you could start a club with g 'n visor." 

"WHILE THAT WOULD BE VERY ENTERTAINING, I WON'T BE WEARING A SWEATER EVERY DAY- NOT YET AT LEAST. NOT UNTIL THE WEATHER GETS ULTIMATELY COLDER." Blue hummed, tugging the sweater off and folding it. "OOH! CHINE, YOU LOOK NICE IN THAT! ARE YOU GOING TO CHOOSE THAT?" He exclaimed, looking past Mutt towards Chine making the taller look over as well.

Chine was now wearing a dark grey zip up hoodie with a lighter grey fur-lined hood, on its sleeves were three thick grey stripes. Chine's eyelights were bright and suddenly much to both Mutt and Blue's surprise, they changed into actual _stars_ \- just like Blue's would on excitable occasions. "fuck. yes." He mumbled with a wide, satisfied smile while tugging slightly at the side of the hoodie.

"CHINE! YOUR EYES! YOUR EYELIGHTS!!" Blue gasped with glee, suddenly taking Chine's hands in his and- yep, there were those memorable star-shaped eyelights that Blue was known for. "THEY'RE STARS! THEY CAN TURN INTO STARS JUST LIKE MINE!!"

Taken back, Chine spluttered with a blushing blue face, his eyelights were back to normal much to Blue's slight disappointment but that didn't effect his excitement whatsoever. "w-wha- blue-" He fumbled, he freed one hand and coughed into it, looking away. "y-yeah. i guess? it's not really normal i know but like-" 

"IT'S WONDERFUL! WE CAN _BOTH_ BE STAR BOYS!" 

"star _what_?!" Chine yelped, startled as Blue laughed uproariously.

Mutt chuckled. 

Well he had to change one of his contacts soon, since Blue wouldn't be the only 'Star Boy' now.

He had to blink though as he thought he saw something glint from underneath Chine's chin. Or more specifically, from underneath Chine's scarf.

From his time working with metal, he had to say the glint seemed more gold-copperish...

Hmm.

* * *

"Enjoying Your New Hoodie 'Star Boy'?" You question quietly with an amused smirk. Your brother gives you a disgruntled glare as he adjusted his scarf among its new place between the furred space of his new furred hood. Honestly it seems stuffy to do it like that, it wasn't that cold yet to justify the scarf paired with the furred hood but you know that your brother wouldn't be comfortable to show off his new shiny appendage underneath said scarf so you said nothing about it. 

"shut up. i forgot sans could make stars in his eyes." Your brother mumbles, face coloring blue and just fueling your amusement. 

Currently the two of you were waiting at the side as Mutt paid for the clothes at the cashier, both Blue and Pyrus briefly broke away towards the bathroom so that left the two of you to the side. 

"How Could You Forget? You Had Frisk Be So Fascinated With Sans' Eyelights For A While." You point out to him quietly, watching with glee as the color deepened on his face. 

You dodge the attempted swipe at your side, "i said _shut up_." He hissed at you, glaring at your shit-eating grin. "you're such a cocky little shit! fuck, bet you're even more smug now that you've got papyrus' knowledge- but hey, you're _finally_ smart in something." He mocks you.

There's a twinge of annoyance, but it's overshadowed by the pride of Papyrus' knowledge in your head because _yeah you do_. If you focused specifically, you could recall information that by all means you had no idea before- information that was something originally that Papyrus learned. You by all means weren't a skilled mechanic _before_ this insane situation, you could follow instructions to fix up a few things around the apartment but the in depth knowledge of a steampunk-esque mechanic now laid barely uncovered in your head.

Of course paired underneath that pride was guilt because you certainly did _not_ earn that knowledge. You didn't learn all of it yourself, that was all Papyrus. You may know the basics and some intimate details of some of the projects he had like the details of the steam-powered Celeragi. You and your brother did amazing with the world building, the frost and flame oils were your idea. But the rest of the information, stuff that you haven't even _considered_ all that much- that was _all_ Papyrus. Prosthesis Papyrus.

Who wasn't here. 

You weren't him and yet here you were, gaining everything _he_ did.

You don't think you'll ever drop that guilt.

You're still proud though. Not of yourself, but of Papyrus because he's just a flat out fucking _badass_. An intellectual badass that you somewhat wish would take your place, or rather have his original place back. 

"His Knowledge Has Bolstered My Own Intellect Yes, But Does That Mean I'm Cocky? No Brother, It Does Not. Not When It's Likely You Have Sans' Knowledge As Well. Otherwise I'd Be Very Uncomfortable Right Now." You reply, tapping your visor and causing him to sigh deeply. "And Before You Ask, I Feel Fine. It's Barely Been A Day." Your SOUL was fine and you were as well.

"i wasn't going to ask that." Your brother told you seriously, a thoughtful frown on his face. You pause and wait for him to ask, what _did_ he want to ask then? "do you... bro i'm glad we do have their knowledge, it'll make our lives... easier i guess. not entirely fucking comfortable, but what i'm getting at is what else do we have? we have their body, clothes, items, knowledge- probably magic at this point along with the whole other shit but that... _incident_ earlier... where we both..." ' _Cried like a couple of weaklings_ ' went unsaid as your brother grimaced at the reminder. 

You grimace as well. 

That had been... less than pleasant.

"What Of It?" You questioned with a strained tone. 

Your brother inhaled deeply, "why the fuck did we do that? we never, _never_ do that no matter fucking what- we haven't cried out in public in _years_ and yet all it takes is the name of one fictional character and we were on the fucking ground bawling." It's an exaggeration, but it doesn't change the fact that it _did happen_. And thinking about it now, it really _is_ strange, a disturbing kind of strange, that single mention of 'Gaster' was enough to send you _both_ into a quiet fit of tears.

You've never cried in a store since...

_ "Boys do not cry,  _ especially _in the damn store with me. Suck it up and stop that." He orders you and you try. You're trying but it's so_ hard _even with how scared you were feeling now. If anything, it's fueling your tears._

_ You flinch as he clicked his tongue in clear disappointment, your brother is trembling behind him, fists balled and pale. The others are watching and the weight of their stares aren't helping you. "If you don't stop crying right now... You're not that stupid of a kid, your brother's a genius so you should know what comes next." You're breathing too heavy, too fast, to stop crying. "What a disappointment." He steps back and you're crying even harder now because you  _ do _know what's coming next._

_ But to your ever building horror, it  _ isn't _your brother that is being pushed towards you. "Not you. Don't think I didn't notice you being fucking_ soft _ on your brother. You're biased. You don't get to punish him, not until you shape up and do shit properly." He growls to your brother with an iron grip on his shoulder to stop him as you're backed into the corner, the older boy before you looking at you with a somewhat apologetic look but ultimately scared look. If he doesn't do this right then it would be _him _ in the corner instead of you._

_ He raises a tight clenched fist in the air- _

"You're Suggesting That We've Also Inherited The Instinctual Emotions Of Sans And Papyrus? Is That What You're Trying To Suggest?" You question through gritted teeth, trying to shove away that particular memory. It was a bad one, and you can't even remember the names of looks of everyone in it. Not even you and your brother's. 

You hated the fact that you couldn't remember names and faces of almost _anything_ from your personal life. Now that you were thinking about it, why just that? You could remember Undertale just fine, Prosthesis AU even better. With Papyrus' knowledge, you know Prosthesis AU better than ever before.

Your brother takes your attention once more as he nods grimly, "we're gonna have to be careful, you and i both know how fucked up this all is and what exactly triggers them. gaster- i honestly forgot about him until pyrus brought him up. we _can't_ end up like that again. not... not out here." He says quietly, clutching the end of his scarf tightly and a dark look on his face.

You find yourself gripping the end of your new sweater as well. "I-"

"hey, you two okay?" You both jump, magic instinctively spiking in your surprise leading to you _summoning a bone_ and aiming it at _Mutt_. Your brother had done the same. Mutt immediately backtracked, hands up in the air in surrender and a somber look of understanding and sympathy on his face. The sight of sympathy on the other's face has you clutching tightly at the arm-length bone in your hand.

You don't really like sympathy, it felt almost too much like pity if it came from anyone else but your brother or from those you've let close to you. 

You liked Mutt, but he was still essentially a stranger to you even if he was a Fellswap Papyrus. Even if just hours earlier you'd been babbling to him about frost and flame oils and the Celeragi. 

You don't like the sympathy on his face. "it's okay. you both cool?" Mutt questioned quietly, soothingly even, trying not to incur both you and your brother's reflexive attacks once more by being passive. It's infuriating almost what with his fucking sympathy, but it works. Your rationality breaks through the surprise and panic, forcing yourself to relax and stop threateningly holding the bone towards him. 

Your brother on the other hand was still looking at Mutt with intensely dazed and faintly glowing blue eyelights, still threatening and tense like a bowstring. "chine- chine it's cool. c'mon, stores don't really like it when we use magic in them." You glance at the cashier who was watching with apprehensive and hesitant looks, they see your gaze and looks away and you scowl. 

If this escalated and your brother lost himself to what was clearly Prosthesis' Sans' instinctive reflexes somewhat merged with his own instincts and problems, then they'd all be in trouble. Mutt was being careful and soothing, which worked with you... but it wouldn't exactly work on your brother. Not really. Mutt wasn't close to him after all. 

Stars, this was such a fucking pain. You wonder what you'd done to deserve this. What you both did or what exactly happened because this was all so _ridiculous. ~~You're so tired.~~_

"ARE YOU DONE BEING RIDICULOUS BROTHER?" You question loudly, gaining your brother's attention. His gaze is still hazy and faintly glowing, but he's no longer focusing on Mutt, "STOP LOOKING LIKE A FUCKING IDIOT, OH WAIT, YOU CAN'T BECAUSE THAT'S JUST HOW YOU NATURALLY LOOK." You insult and reach over to slap his head. Slap some sense into him- which works. He's brought back into reality. "PUT THE BONE DONE, YOU'RE BEING AN EMBARRASSMENT TO YOURSELF."

"oh and you weren't?" Your brother spits out but slowly, he lowers his arm. He takes in a deep slow breath and lets it go after a moment, "shit. sorry mutt. i- we're not good with surprises sometimes." He apologized, gaze firmly aimed at the floor, fiddling with the bone in his hand. No doubt he was starting to wonder about it, _you_ were starting to wonder about the bone in your hand yourself. 

You managed to summon a bone! That was good? But how the hell do you let it disappear?

Mutt's sympathy is irritatingly still there on his face as he slowly lowers his arms, tucking his hands into his pocket and nodding at you both. "yeah, that's a mood." He mumbles just loud enough for you both to hear it. "just finished with the payment, we just have to wait for the others to come back." 

"Yes. RIGHT." You replied maybe a bit too firmly as you look down to the bone in your hand, trying to dismiss it. It's still in your hand and you sigh. 

You still had a lot to figure out it seems.

* * *

Blue and Pyrus came back soon enough, surprisingly Noir was with them.

Apparently they'd met up along the way as Noir was finally finished with whatever it was he'd been doing. 

When asked what he'd been doing, he simply swept it to the side and forced them to focus on something else; moving on from the store and getting to the next location. By the time all three had come back, Chine and Visor had managed to dismiss the bone after a few discrete attempts. Their attempts were noticed by Mutt, who quietly noted their behavior and tried his best not to set them off again.

He really didn't want to accidentally start something with them, the last time a fight almost broke out between the skeletons by it within themselves or with outsiders they almost would've been kicked out. Mutt didn't want to be kicked out of Hydes, it was a great store. 

"i- you know i think i got all that i need for now." Chine told them after Blue excitedly suggested another store to get to. He looked noticeably exhausted, and he wasn't the only one. 

Visor nodded in agreement, looking away from Chine and Mutt, "INDEED. WE HAVE WHAT WE NEED FOR THE MOMENT, AND I DO FEEL A BIT TIRED. IF THERE IS NOTHING ELSE TO DO, PERHAPS WE CAN GO BACK? ADMITTEDLY I'D RATHER AVOID THE GROWING AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WE OWE YOU." He admits, having kept track over the prices. He was determined to repay them somehow, someway. 

"UM, ALRIGHT? YOU DO LOOK TIRED... I SUPPOSE WE CAN STOP FOR TODAY AND GO BACK HOME. IT IS ALMOST LUNCH, AND A HOMEMADE LUNCH DOES SOUND BETTER THAN EATING WITHIN THE MALL! AND PLEASE, DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE PRICE OF EVERYTHING IS- YOU HAVE LOTS OF TIME TO DO WHATEVER IT IS TO PAY US BACK! AND BESIDES, YOU NEEDED THE CLOTHES SO REALLY, YOU DON'T HAVE TO PAY US BACK! WE'RE NOT SHORT ON MONEY VISOR!" Blue exclaimed to him, smiling reassuringly. 

Stubbornly, Visor shook his head. "EVEN SO, IT DOES NOT FEEL RIGHT TO NOT REPAY YOU."

"yeah, there's some things we can both agree on without arguing the shit out of it and repaying what we owe is one of 'em." Chine backed him up.

Both Pyrus and Blue sighed while Mutt chuckled, "VERY WELL."

"WELL IF WE'RE DONE HERE THEN WE CAN INDEED RETURN BACK TOWARDS THE MANSION. RIGHT ON TIME ANYWAY, THE INFLUX OF OTHER SHOPPERS HAS OCCURRED AND I WOULD RATHER LIKE TO AVOID THE CROWDS!" Noir declared with a scoff, however he was right and they all agreed with wanting to avoid the crowd of shoppers that were now in the mall.

So with that, they left the mall and back towards the cars with their new clothes. 

Surprisingly though, Visor insisted on switching cars, wanting to ride with Blue and Pyrus this time instead of Mutt and Noir. Chine didn't complain, suspecting Visor's reason behind it as Visor kept his gaze away from Mutt who noticed it as well. 

Only Blue and Pyrus were really concerned over the switch but happily accepted it anyway, Mutt merely sighed and gave Chine a tired smile that Chine mirrored. Noir made an exaggerated statement of, "GOOD RIDDANCE! AT LEAST THERE WILL NOT BE ANY TECHNICAL TALK IN THE BACKSEAT! LEFT ME WITH A HEADACHE WITH JUST THE BACKGROUND CHATTER OF MECHANICS AND SUCH." He really didn't enjoy both Visor and Mutt babbling in mechanics and more in the backseat.

Even though they were entering separate cars, Mutt and Visor snorted in amusement. 

Close around lunch, they left the mall's parking area and headed back towards the mansion up in the forest.

* * *

_ GRAVEYARD CHAT  
_ _ pupper, BlueStars, redhead, streeeetch, Librarian... _

_ pupper 11:29 AM _  
heading back  
guess we're joining in for lunch 

_ BlueStars 11:30 AM _  
IT MOSTLY WENT FINE! I THINK!  
WILL TALK MORE ABOUT IT AFTER WE COME BACK!!

_ hopstepjump 11:30 AM  
_ huh nice  
would've thought you'd come back after lunch

_streeeetch 11:30 AM_  
same but nice to know youre coming home

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter 13!  
> it came in later than i'd like but i managed to get it up.
> 
> i'm really amazed by the amount of people who like my work- like holy _fuck_  
>  i can't be the only one to see these:  
> [Submitted by anonymous](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/post/628225461030371328/hello-bruh-i-really-like-your-2-storys-xd-ps-i)  
> [By isleepinheaven](https://isleepinheaven.tumblr.com/post/628277981448699904/vindictiveskeletons-mmmm-love-your-writing-style)  
> [Submitted by dylancomic](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/post/628680460968542208/hey-its-my-v-but-whit-a-count-this-is-the)  
> [Submitted by jathm](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/post/629046440441856000/i-try-i-hope-its-good-enough-chine-from-the)  
> [By addicted-to-the-fic](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/post/629462739615662080/this-is-amazing-and-i-fucking-love-it-this-is-a)  
> [By gallaryee](https://gallaryee.tumblr.com/post/629653424643948544/i-wanted-to-draw-some-sad-boys-these-boys-belong)  
> [By valeriavionics](https://valeriavionics.tumblr.com/post/629169105331781632/fanart-for-vindictiveskeletons-of-their)
> 
> THANK YOU SO MUCH YOU GUYS  
> i cannot _stress_ how much i'm so fucking happy by your support and by everything you guys did either by art _or_ by comment. i love reading comments even if i don't reply to every single one.  
> see you next chapter!  
> spinal maintenance may or may not come in a couple of chapters i promise you that. i have to build the relationship between the skeletons first and write out a few other world-building things into it all :)  
> though next update might take a bit since i have a few things to do first before i write the next update. tweak a few things in the story. don't worry it's not really that important.  
> welp, let me know what you think and see you next update!


	14. Touch Tone Mobile Phone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> have a partial chat chapter  
> and sorry for the longish wait- i just recently got a new drawing tablet, i've _never_ had a drawing tablet before so i'm trying to get the handle of things and quite honestly? i think i'm doing good! i've made some progress and i'm getting more used to using the tablet.
> 
> [for example, this is what i'm capable of doing now with the tablet.](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/post/631468770511224832/i-am-getting-more-and-more-used-with-my-drawing) ain't it grand? 
> 
> at any rate, enjoy the chapter.

_ GRAVEYARD CHAT (11:29 AM)  
_ _ pupper, BlueStars, redhead, streeeetch, Librarian, CoolDude!!, EdgeBoss, hopstepjump, zzZZZzz, bullseye, chacharealsmooth, chachanotsmooth, sunnysmiles, axeuaquestion, BringingSexyBack, HisMajesty_

_ pupper  _   
heading back  
guess we're joining in for lunch 

_ BlueStars  _   
IT MOSTLY WENT FINE! I THINK!  
WILL TALK MORE ABOUT IT AFTER WE COME BACK!!

_ hopstepjump   
_ huh nice  
would've thought you'd come back after lunch

_ streeeetch  _   
same but nice to know youre coming home

_ Bluestars  _   
WE DECIDED TO END EARLY SO WE CAN COME HOME FOR LUNCH AND AVOID THE CROWDS!

chacharealsmooth  
DOES THAT MEAN WE'LL ALL BE EATING IN THE MANSION AGAIN? BUT THIS TIME FOR LUNCH?  
AND THIS TIME WE'LL ACTUALLY HAVE EVERYONE AROUND?

_ BringingSexyBack _   
Ouch Tangs I can feel the jab from here.

_ Librarian _   
You do deserve that jab.

_ BringingSexyBack _   
Double ouch, this time from my brother.

_ chachanotsmooth _   
OH! MAY I ASSIST IN COOKING LUNCH BLACK? I'VE RECENTLY FOUND A GOOD RECIPE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO TRY OUT!

_ chacharealsmooth _   
YOU HAVE? WONDERFUL! I WOULD LIKE TO HELP AS WELL!

_ hopstepjump _   
yo @HisMajesty my bro and tango want to help with lunch

_ HisMajesty _   
WHAT IS IT?!  
OH.  
I DON'T PARTICULARLY CARE IF THEY WOULD LIKE TO HELP OR NOT BUT FEEL FREE TO DO SO.  
I'M JUST ABOUT TO START ANYWAY.  
AND @pupper BROTHER! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU TO CLEAN YOUR ROOM?! YOU LEFT WITHOUT MAKING YOUR BED!

_ pupper _   
whoops sorry bro  
i'll do it when i get back i promise

_ HisMajesty _   
YOU BETTER! OR I SWEAR I'M THROWING OUT THE DISGUSTING STASH OF SAUCE I FOUND IN YOUR ROOM!

_ redhead _   
woah black don't go threatening a guy's stash  
but hey hes gotta get encurryaged i guess

_ zzZZZzz _   
really puttin mutt in a pickle there black

_ streeeetch _   
i'm sure he can dill with it

_ hopstepjump _   
he mayo be able to do it after that yeah

_ BringingSexyBack _   
Really relishing this for all it is.

_ bullseye _   
yall need to chili out

_ BlueStars _   
THIS IS VISOR. I AM TEMPORARILY BORROWING BLUE'S PHONE TO INFORM YOU THAT BOTH BLUE AND PYRUS HAVE GROANED QUITE LOUDLY AND ARE COMPLAINING ABOUT THE CURRENT LINE OF PUNS. PLEASE DO NOT ADD MORE PUNS AS I TOO, AM NOT AMUSED BY THIS. 

_ pupper _   
this is chine, ignore my brother and continue on with the puns. mutt n i are having a fucking blast.

_ BlueStars _   
IGNORE MY BROTHER AND STOP.

_ pupper _   
ignore my bro and go.

_ sunnysmile _   
!! CHINE! VISOR! HELLO!

_ axeuaquestion _   
hey you two

_ chacharealsmooth _   
HELLO YOU TWO!! HOW WAS THE SHOPPING TRIP?   
DID YOU GET EVERYTHING YOU NEEDED?

_ redhead _   
did ya get the fur hood?

_ pupper _   
fuck yeah i did. found the perfect one for me.

_ BlueStars _   
THE SHOPPING TRIP WENT AS WELL AS IT COULD'VE AND WE HAVE EVERYTHING WE NEED FOR THE MOMENT. ANYTHING ELSE CAN BE BOUGHT AT A LATER TIME AND HOPEFULLY BY THEN, BY OUR OWN MONEY.

_ chachanotsmooth _   
THAT IS VERY UNDERSTANDABLE!  
MY BROTHER AND I WERE IN QUITE THE DOOZY AS WELL IN TERMS OF MONEY AND OWING EVERYONE ELSE FOR PROVIDING FOR US FOR A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME! LUCKILY WE HAD SOME GOLD IN OUR POCKETS SO WE WERE ABLE TO EXCHANGE IT TO PAY OUR DEBT WHILE WE LOOKED FOR WORK!

_ zzZZZzz _   
really tho at the start there wasnt really any need for payback but like at this point its appreciated i guess

_ HisMajesty _   
WE DO NOT LIKE THE FEELING OF OWING PEOPLE, EVEN IF THEY ARE OUR ALTERNATE SELVES! 

_ pupper _   
so you all got jobs?

_ BlueStars _   
SOMEWHAT!  
IT IS THE SENSATIONAL BLUE ONCE MORE! BUT NOT REALLY, NOT EVERYONE HAS A JOB. OR AN OFFICIAL ONE AT LEAST. LIKE ME!  
I'M MORE OF A HOUSEKEEPER. AT THE VERY LEAST I CAN MAKE SURE OUR HOMES ARE NICE AND CLEAN!

_ sunnysmile _   
I AS WELL.  
I AM MY BROTHER AND I'S HOUSEKEEPER AND GARDNER. THOUGH SOMETIMES I WILL SELL WHATEVER CROP I'VE GROWN OR STOCK I'VE RAISED.

_ pupper _   
interestin  
i'm not much of a gardner but if ya need help with crops and plants crooks let me know  
what about you axe, you got a job?

_ axeuaquestion _   
yeap  
sometimes work as a butcher in town.  
or at least a hunter, there's some good game in the forest so whenever the shop wants some venison or something they call me up so i can get it.

_ sunnysmile _   
I VERY MUCH APPRECIATE THE OFFER CHINE! I SHALL KEEP THAT IN MIND.

_ pupper _   
yeeeee  


* * *

"here, shouldn't be hogging the thing to myself. it's _your_ phone." You say, handing Mutt back his phone. He merely looked amused, glancing between you and his phone. 

Shrugging, he idly tapped into his phone, replying to you and the chat. "no problem bud." 

"I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE THAT YOU'VE FORGOTTEN TO MAKE YOUR BED! AT LEAST _MY_ BROTHER CAN DO THAT MUCH." Noir sniffed from the driver's seat. 

Mutt snorted, "you sure 'bout that noir?"

Noir opened his mouth before pausing and scowling at him through the rearview mirror, "DO INFORM MY BROTHER THAT HIS BED HAD BETTER BEEN MADE BY THE TIME WE GET HOME." You and Mutt snicker as Mutt does exactly that.

Sighing, you lean back against your seat, enjoying the fur that cushions the back of your skull- this new hoodie of yours really _is_ comfortable. You definitely made the right choice for it. Your coat is folded and tucked in one of the shopping bags you have in the car, each one filled with clothes that you would need- for the moment anyway. You'd probably buy more at a later time. 

"i've been thinking." Mutt says aloud, gaining your attention, "visor seems pretty handy with machines. he and i talked a bit on the way to the mall, he explained to me 'bout those frost and flare oils. interestin' things, shame we don't have 'em here." 

You can't help but snort, "yeah, real shame. you'd benefit from it fo' sure, but then again, it's probably a good reason why it doesn't exist here. doesn't seem like our universe in a lot of ways." It's not necessarily a lie, your universe didn't have bonafide monsters like them, nor did they have magic and such. And it was an ultimate truth for Prosthesis AU, seeing as it was a steampunkish war world that had a _lot_ to it.

You and your brother got a bit carried away with the world building and details, but you were very proud over it. Still are, but....

"yeah. your universe definitely's different compared to this one, even ours." Mutt said and you focus back on the conversation right now. "our magic's not as broad or creative like yours, we don't have healing mist or giant ships in the sky making said healing mist." That made you blink slightly.

"visor told you 'bout the mentum ships?" You question as you thought of the large light green blimps from Prosthesis AU. 

"IN GREAT DETAIL." Noir admitted, stopping as the light went red in traffic. Sighing at the old lady at the other side of the road. "I WILL ADMIT, THOUGH I AM NOT INTERESTED IN SUCH THINGS LIKE MECHANICS AND ENGINEERING, THERE ARE VARIOUS MACHINES FROM YOUR UNIVERSE THAT I AM INTERESTED IN. HE TOLD US- WELL, HE TOLD MUTT, I WAS SUBJECTED TO UNWILLINGLY LISTENING IN TO HIS BABBLINGS- THAT THOSE MENTUM SHIPS CAN PRODUCE HEALING MISTS THAT CAN COVER WHOLE CITIES. THAT THE PROCESS IN CREATING THESE MISTS ARE SIMILAR ENOUGH WITH MONSTER COOKING WHERE WE INFUSE FOOD WITH HEALING MAGIC AND THUS CREATE MONSTER FOOD THAT CAN HEAL."

"yeah, glad to know you were paying attention." Mutt chuckled, ignoring Noir's sharp look at him, "but yeah what he said. he was about to explain how the mentum ships were created but we ended up at the mall. he said he was gonna explain the rest of it on the way back..." The unsaid ' _But_ ' and the vague motion of Mutt's hand was enough for you to get it.

"but he's not here. you're askin' me to explain?" 

He shrugs, "don't have to if you don't want to. or if ya don't know." 

You scoff, "i do know. and sure why not. since my bro's not here to keep his word guess i'll just have to pick up where he left off. fucking bastard, dropping his word like that." You mutter with a roll of your eyelights. "you said he was about to explain _how_ they were created?" 

"yeah. how and like, when." 

"how as in how the healing mist is created specifically or how it was first created? like the context or history of it?" You question him, he looked thoughtful before shrugging.

"history i guess, i'm curious as to how the hell someone thought of giant green blimps created healing mists."

"alright." You sigh, straightening in your seat and adjusting your seatbelt, you began. "the mentum ships, or the 'healer blimps' as most people called them, aren't exactly a recent invention. four or more decades ago, an illness swept over the world. people fell into sick comas, both human and monsters alike. with the sickness happening, the symptoms prevented most people from drinking or even eating, either they couldn't do it themselves or they'd end up vomiting everything out. not to mention healers couldn't provide everyone with treatment at once, there were too many people, too many places with the sickness." You were about to remind Noir to keep driving, however unlike Pyrus, it seemed that Noir was capable of keeping attention to the road so without a problem, he was able to continue on driving. 

Mutt was grimacing, but his gaze never left you as he was no doubt interested in your explanation. Noir too, however you were grateful to know that Noir could multitask and was more than capable of listening to you and driving his car. "and so, the greatest minds across the lands banded together, gathered by the leaders of their respective country to create either a cure. or a way to lighten the healers' work load. it took a while, a long ass while, but in the end they managed to create not only a cure, but healing mist. A way for spread healing magic over a large area without straining a single person's magic. and from there, they created vessels for that way- mentum ships were the most popular. spreading healing 'mists' over cities and healing wounds and weak illnesses."

"AND NOW IT IS A REGULAR OCCURRENCE? DOES IT NOT COST THE PEOPLE ANYTHING TO RECEIVE THE 'HEALING MISTS' FROM THE MENTUM SHIPS? I DOUBT THAT ANY GOVERNMENT OR EVEN MONARCHY WOULD FREELY GIVE SUCH A WONDROUS THING WITHOUT SOME- REPAYMENTS." Noir spoke up, glancing at you through the mirror. 

"'course not." You say with a small smirk, "at first it was mostly free- mostly because they _needed_ to be free. almost everyone was sick. but as time passed, it was decided that taxes, donations and shit were used to fund the mentum ships and other public healing machinery. not only that, the old dosage of healing mist was drastically lowered. cheaper that way- they won't up the dosage unless another sickness breaks out anywhere. the mist now-a-days are just enough to at least heal small wounds and sickness. it helps keep children alive as well, 'specially in the streets." 

Mutt didn't seem to be expecting that, looking thoughtful and almost even awed, "you got free healthcare there in a way." He mumbles to himself.

"WHICH IS BETTER THAN THIS UNIVERSE'S HEALTHCARE- AT LEAST IN _THIS_ COUNTRY."

You chuckle, "i guess." It had been an offhand idea from your brother.

_ 'If we're doing a war AU then we should at least give free healthcare.' _

And from there it pretty much extended to a whole history and newfound system in Prosthesis AU.

Not to mention the Mentum Ships were... vigorously used for obvious reasons and not so obvious reasons. 

They were healing ships. Mostly. 

At least the street children and the homeless in Prosthesis AU had a better chance of living and healing.

The shops and buildings disappear as Noir drives the car up the road and back into the woods where the skeleton property was held, following after Pyrus' car. "WHAT WAS THE NAME OF THE ILLNESS? AND YOU SAY THE GREATEST MINDS ACROSS THE LAND- DO YOU KNOW WHO EXACTLY THEY ARE? OR AT LEAST WERE?" He asks and you grimace.

"... there's two names for it, the humans called it the 'slumberin' sickness'. since most died in their sleep in the coma back then as for monsters- they called it the 'fallen plague'. for obvious reasons." Both fell versions of Papyrus did get it and the atmosphere drops a bit- was this going to be a running theme for you? You end up in a car, someone ask about Prosthesis AU and you end up explaining which will ultimately bring down the mood?

You aren't really complaining but still, this was the second time you'd have to explain something rather heavy and important pertaining to the Prosthesis Universe. 

"and the greatest minds? who was part of the band that saved the day?" Mutt questioned making you cringe slightly- okay so maybe you wouldn't mind the mood lowering a bit if they could stew in silence and _not_ ask that part. 

It's not that you don't want to answer, but...

Mutt notices your discomfort, "you don't have to answer if ya don't want to chine." He says quietly and you nod tersely at him. Embarrassment and a bitterly shameful feeling grows within your chest. 

Just because you ended up crying in fucking _public_ , you didn't want to say his name out loud huh? Can't even answer _one **damn question**_.

You knew the answer, you damn well knew the answer- There were five names that come to mind, and two of them were something you were hesitant to say. One of them being the reason why you cried today and you definitely don't want to mention him and risk another pathetic display of weakness but the other...

_ You couldn't take your eyes of her, sockets wide with horror as realization settled into your bones. Besides you stands your brother, horrified as well but his horror quickly transformed into fury. "YOU- YOU BACKSTABBING BITCH!" He shrieked, magic fluctuating and pulsing like a rapid heartbeat. "HOW **DARE YOU?!** " He doesn't get a reply, just a cold look and a chilling silence that brings a shiver down your metallic spine. She... she-  _

_ Did she know? You suddenly think, glancing to the side only to see the mirroring look of horror. Oh, she didn't know. But her face was so similar to- to- _

_ " **YOU'RE GOING TO PAY!"** Your brother screams, leaping into action like the emotional dumbass that he is. But you're not far from joining him as the damned monster _ moves.

You're surprised at the sudden amount of irritation at the thought of the other name. The utter emotion of malice and anger- you don't ever remember feeling this angry about- no wait.

This must be Chine's instinctual feelings against _her_. 

You grimace, rubbing your chest as the more you thought about it the more it made sense. 

When thinking of the background and reason for the existence of the healing mists, the Mentum ships and other various inventions, a number of names would regularly be used for credit- most were random names for the rest of the scientists but there were a specific five that were 'plot relevant' to the story of Prosthesis AU. Among those five, three were humans while the other two were monsters, and those two monster scientists that would always make _both_ Sans and Papyrus feel a range of emotions. 

' _guess my bro and i are lucky to be here, even in these bodies,_ ' You thought, head bowed and staring firmly out of the window. ' _at least here, we're safe and have plenty of leg room. if we were back in the prosthesis au we would've been dusted the first week. maybe even the first day depending... hah, 'course the one thing we're both so proud after months of almost non-stop brainstorming would fucking bite us in the ass in the end._ '

Depending on where and when you woke up in Sans and Papyrus _within_ the Prosthesis AU. There were tons of chances you'd probably be dusted for various reasons- even with the instinctual crap you had right now. At least you could slowly get used to it here in regular peaceful Undertale. In Prosthesis AU? There'd be too much stress on you and your brother's shoulders for sure. 

You're not too sure on how long you'd last honestly, even with whatever help you'd get from the various allies and tentative friends the skeletons had.

One such ally was related to the the second monster scientist...

You have to wonder though, ignoring the irritated and low-key angry emotions that _weren't even yours_ , if Alphys had any relatives here. The thought of the reptilian scientist actually calms you a bit much to your relief. 

Did she have any relatives here like she does in Prosthesis AU? Not only that, did she have a last name too? She was never confirmed to have any in the game's canon and rarely did you ever find anyone talking about it in the fanon either, at least you and your brother never found any... Guess you might find out in the future since she'd be coming around sometime.

...

You feel like you're forgetting something here.

"chine. _chine._ " You jolt as Mutt's voice brings you out of your thoughts, he looked amused before pointing to outside the car's window. "we're back." You really were. Damn. 

"shit, i keep blanking out into my head." You mutter, "sorry, did i miss anything?" You thought you reared that habit back. Guess being in a new body brought back old bad habits. You have to focus more. 

Mutt shook his head while Noir snorted. "NO. YOU DID NOT MISS ANYTHING, ASIDE FROM OUR ARRIVAL TO THE GATES OF OUR PROPERTY." 

Right, shaking your head. You sit up straighter in your seat and ready your bags. "it's good to be back."

* * *

_ MewMewCutie 12:35 PM _   
the paperwork for the new ids are being processed right now, undyne and i are on our way towards the mansion! though we're stopping by a place for lunch :)  
  


_ skeletonthefirst 1:37 PM _   
sounded great alph  
im saury for the late reply  
i got distracted by the others  
just finished lunch myself a few minutes ago  
visor and chine are here so you and undyne can meet them

_MewMewCutie Now_  
it's fine sans! but apology not accepted for using that pun! it was pretty bad >:P  
really?? can't wait then! we've been wondering about the newest skeleton brothers you guys managed to get! you never did tell us on what type of universe they came from

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
hehehe cmon alph that was a pretty good apology  
yeah  
might want to wait a bit for details on that  
it ain't pretty alph and we don't have the whole picture but so far as we know it's probably a bit more worse than axe's universe

_MewMewCutie Now_  
oh  
that  
that doesn't sound good at all :(  
are they going through a famine as well?

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
not really   
like i said, might want to wait a bit on the details  
or you could ask them yourself

_MewMewCutie Now_  
maybe  
but isn't it kind of early to ask? it's pretty much only their second day in this universe  
speaking of which, how are they adjusting so far? any problems?

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
yeah  
strangely 'nough i feel like it's been longer  
anyway not really  
i mean, it's not exactly a problem but they're certainly the most strangest versions of my bro and i i've met yet  
their relationship's like red, noir, black and mutt at the start  
insultin' each other almost constantly, they don't do as much physical stuff but this papyrus swears regularly it's weird  
they don't even sleep in the same building

_MewMewCutie Now_  
right, visor sleeps in the mansion while chine sleeps in the cottage  
i guess they like their space? or they're more used to sleeping apart?

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
maybe  
can't really imagine that for paps and i   
don't think the others can too

_MewMewCutie Now_  
as for their relationship...   
all i've got to say is that that probably won't be a problem at all if you and the others have any say of it  
i mean, just look at red and mutt with their brothers now  
you skeletons are just so meddly and nosy and therapeutic somehow!  
at least when it comes to other versions of yourself haha

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
haha yeah  
at least most of the time, but we're doing our best to avoid another axe 'n crooks misunderstanding  
idk alph we just get each other better ya dig?  
you'd probably do the same for other versions of yourself

_MewMewCutie Now_  
yea yikes and oh gosh  
that's a thought  
i don't know sans, i'd probably mess something up or something

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
i dino what to tell ya alph but  
i bet you'd be pretty roarsome at it  
undyne would agree with me

_MewMewCutie Now_  
that was genuinely awful  
and using undyne is just unfair

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
i'm not saury for using the puns  
don't feel ptero-bill at all  
but no less true and you know it alph

_MewMewCutie Now_  
i knoowwww  
>://////////  
sigh   
oh, by any chance have you asked about the machine to them yet? i'll tell asgore which skeleton to add into the contract  
what's the status on the machine? did red and hop pry the panels off and see the damage?

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
we haven't asked yet  
but i think both of them will work on the machine  
they're both smart  
as for the machine itself, well...  
the innards are completely fried so yeah we definitely need new motherboards and circuitry  
again

_MewMewCutie Now_  
really?? both of them?? like green and g?  
now i'm really interested in meeting them both  
what are their specialties? what are they better in?  
and damn, alright  
it'll take a while to get new motherboards  
but i guess that's two new skeletons into the contract. i'll be sure to tell asgore and toriel about it.

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
well i know visors into engineering  
or at least his universe's engineering  
its bizarre alph, most of the universes we've learned off are the same type as ours. modern technology with the exception of skulls universe but theirs?  
its a whole other level  
i dont know much bout chine's specialty but i think its safe to say he knows machines, they both do  
if anything youd probably want them on multiple contracts, not just the one for the machine

_MewMewCutie Now_  
okay NOW you've got me really interested!  
i'd ask more but we're almost there so i might as well ask in person! or well, try to at least  
gosh i'm so nervous

_skeletonthefirst Now_  
you're almost always alph  
don't worry about it  
you get well enough with the others  
even with edgier versions of my bro and i and thats saying something  
besides undyne will be there with ya  
you'll be fine

'You'll be fine.'

That's what Sa- _Classic_ had told her over the phone as she and Undyne drove up towards the mansion. And really, she mostly believed it. That things would be fine, that it would go smoothly and even lovely- the previous instances of where she and Undyne met the other skeletons were mostly good instances! With the obvious exception of the darker versions of her friends. 

She still couldn't believe that Axe's Undyne would ever, that _any_ Undyne would... 

Well, that was put behind them and so far, every version of her friends that end up in their universe didn't seem to have anything against her. At least not enough to actually make threats against her. If anything, they were friendly which she was thankful and relieved with. She knew of the infinite chance that somewhere, somewhen, she wasn't a good person. A good monster- Red and Mutt's versions of herself confirmed that.

But at least they were civil to her and eventually warmed up to her through casual, non-stressful encounters. She and Mutt even talked regularly now, he had an interest in mechanics and robotics that clicked with her. Not to mention, he liked the same sci-fi anime that she likes most of the time so he was an anime-buddy! And anime buddies stuck together. 

Alphys arrived at the mansion with her girlfriend Undyne in good spirits, both excited to meet the newest version of Sans and Papyrus that came from the still malfunctioning machine.

It was a wonder if that machine would ever be repaired completely, but they couldn't really give up now. And they were making small progress every time, and though it was still small, progress was still progress.

"NGAH! PYRUS!" Undyne exclaimed happily as the skeleton greeted them excitedly from the doorway, "Heya buddy!" 

"UNDYNE!" Pyrus exclaims back, laughing happily as the fish monster came up to hug the shit out of him. And of course being the skeleton he was, Pyrus hugged back. "IT IS GREAT TO SEE YOU TODAY!" He yelps when Undyne suddenly cackled and maneuvered their hug into her locking her arm around Pyrus' neck with one arm and the other began to noogie Pyrus vigorously. "ACK! UNDYNE! PLEASE DO NOT NOOGIE THE SKELETON!" 

Alphys giggled, fond as she watched her girlfriend ignore Pyrus' comical pleas- if Pyrus truly wanted the noogie to end, he could easily break out of Undyne's hold. "H-Hi Pyrus." She greeted interrupting Pyrus' mock whining.

Pyrus beamed at her, temporarily ignoring Undyne's noogie-ing. "AH! ALPHYS! HELLO! YOU'RE MUCH EARLIER THAN I THOUGHT YOU'D BE." 

"Ah w-well, I managed to finish a f-few things early today. It's m-my day off today anyway, but I r-really needed to finish a f-few of my p-plans. You know how it is." Alphys smiled helplessly. Ever since the machine malfunctioned and Alphys was appointed her Royal Scientist position once more, she'd been really busy. Thankfully she wasn't alone, from Sans to Undyne, she always managed in the end. Still, her table was quite full from various dishes of works on a silver platter.

Two were new and somewhere on the property she was on right now. 

'You'll be fine.'

"BROTHER! ALPHYS AND UNDYNE ARE HERE! WOULD YOU LET VISOR AND CHINE KNOW THEY'RE HERE?!" Pyrus called out as he dragged Undyne and Alphys into their mansion.

"Yeah! Let me see the two new dorks! One of them has a cool ass visor I want to know more about!! Is it like the visors seen in anime huh?!" Undyne shouted with excited glee, always excited when it came connected to one of her most favorite topics; anime. 

Alphys grinned with her, excited and curious as well. Though like always, she couldn't help but let her eyes wander around the 'Skeleton Mansion'. 

It was really bizarre to think that the two humble skeletons owned such a property, with good reason but still. At least the mansion itself was kind, clean and homely, sure it was a bit lavish but that was probably thanks to Noir and a few other skeleton's homely touches. Pyrus of course wasn't the type to buy the expensive but amazing looking painting on the entrance wall there after all. 

From a lovely little house in Snowdin to a whole property with not only a mansion but also an additional cottage... Alphys smiled to herself and shook herself, only Sans and Papyrus could ever end up like this. 

"'sup alph, undyne." Classic, _her_ Sans, greeted, coming out of the living room with his usual welcoming and lazy smile. "nice to sea ya." He winked at Undyne who rolled her eyes fondly at the pun-obsessed skeleton. He wasn't the only one to come from the living room, Black, G and Hop came as well.

"ALPHYS. UNDYNE." Black greeted curtly, rolling his own eyelights when Undyne stuck her tongue at him. Alphys giggled but nodded back in greeting. 

"Undyne, Alphys, looking amazing as always. How are you both?" G greeted suavely with a pointing finger-gun, smirking at them both.

Undyne snorted at the gesture, "Doing just fine bone-man. And of fucking course we look amazing- just look at my girlfriend! She's the most amazing monster in this room!" She boasted proudly and shamelessly much to Alphys embarrassment.

"U-Undyne-" She protested weakly, it falls on deaf fins as Undyne gives her a sunny sharp smile. She wasn't even wearing anything good today! Just a normal light pink shirt and a comfy skirt. That was all! Blushing, Alphys covered her face while Undyne continued to smile like the lovestruck fool she was. Gosh did Alphys love her. "Y-You're pretty am-amazing too Undyne." She finally says through her embarrassment, her words merely made Undyne smile even brighter if that was possible. 

Hop chuckled, hands firmly in his pockets, "aww. sweet love." He teased much to the amusement of everyone. 

"VERY SWEET- ENOUGH TIME IN THE FOYER! WE'RE GOING TO THE LIVING ROOM FOR MORE COMFORT! I SHALL GO PREPARE SOME TEA FOR YOU TWO WHILE WE WAIT FOR VISOR AND CHINE TO COME! WHERE ARE THEY BY THE WAY?" Pyrus questioned as he ushered everyone into the living room. 

Hop was the one to answer him, "they're both checking out the machine downstairs. finally told 'em 'bout that, green 'n the others took 'em downstairs to check it out." Ah that made sense. 

'You'll be fine.'

"A-Are they _both_ going t-to help l-like G and G-Green?" Alphys asked as she and Undyne sat in the same sofa chair- She sat on Undyne's lap, she would have sat beside her but Undyne pulled her on to her lap. It used to freak her out so much at first, especially in front of others, but now she was used to it. And quite honestly, even if she would never admit it out loud, she loved sitting like this with her girlfriend. 

G hummed, "Seems like it. Visor's admitted to being skilled in hardware, engineering to be exact, Chine has admitted to being better with software or with circuitry." He said aloud while the others nodded. 

"Oh! Th-Then, that's _two_ more names to a-add into the c-contract. A-And four m-more hands to help w-with the machine." She'd have to tell Asgore and Toriel as soon as possible, and make sure the papers for Visor and Chine processed properly. 

"Hell yeah! Sounds great! Hey, which do you think is up for joining our training group huh Pyrus? Black?" Undyne questioned, glancing at the two. She and the more energetic brothers, the exception of Green and Crooks, had formed a training group amongst themselves, where they could train and spar together _or_ against each other. It was handy for exercising and keeping in shape, something that Noir and Black were really adamant about. Despite going 'soft', they wanted to make sure they could still attack as efficiently as they did before. Just in case. 

Sometimes, their brothers or some of the others would join which always lead to vigorous sessions. 

"IT'S HARD TO SAY." Black started, looking thought and exchanging glances with Pyrus. "I HAVE YET TO SEE HOW THE TWO OF THEM FARE AGAINST ANYONE OR EVEN USE THEIR MAGIC. BUT EVEN THEN, I CAN TELL THE BOTH OF THEM ARE STRONG. VISOR IN PARTICULAR IS A FEW LVS ABOVE CHINE- HE IS LEVEL 13 WHILE CHINE IS LV 10." 

Both Undyne and Alphys had to double take at that, "What?!" They chorused. "They're that high of a level?! Just what kind of universe did they come from?!" Undyne questioned firmly, standing from her seat though she kept her arms around her reptilian girlfriend who squeaked but just let Undyne hold her in the end, dread already settling in her and Alphys' stomachs. High lvs usually meant rough universes after all. 

The grimaces that each skeleton wore at the question did not help that dread. "somewhere not really nice." Hop admitted with a sigh. 

"I SUPPOSE BROTHER HASN'T TOLD YOU ABOUT IT THEN?" Pyrus gave Classic a look, to which Classic shrugged at. 

Shifting on his part of the couch he sat on, Classic sighed. "yeah i probably should've filled her in with the details a bit but, didn't seem right to tell her without the full details. didn't want to end up making another misunderstanding like with axe 'n crooks." He pointed out as they all winced. 

Right. 

Classic had first told her about Axe and Crooks, about their human-eating ways. And she freaked out about it, telling Undyne and the others immediately and-

Thank the stars they managed to fix everything before it had escalated to something worse than it already was. She was surprised that Axe and Crooks even forgave her for that. 

"A FAIR POINT." Black conceded with an irritated sigh. "STILL, TELLING HER ABOUT THE STATE OF THEIR UNIVERSE WOULDN'T HAVE HURT AT ALL CLASSIC... THEY COME FROM A WAR-ERA UNIVERSE. AND WHEN I MEAN WAR, I _MEAN WAR_. THEIR COUNTRIES ARE AT ARMS AGAINST EACH OTHER, IT'S NOT JUST MONSTERS VERSUS HUMAN WAR LIKE MOST OF OUR UNIVERSES HAD BEFORE THE MONSTERS WERE SEALED, IT IS A WORLD WIDE WAR. THOUGH I SUSPECT IT'S _LIKE_ THE MONSTERS VERSUS HUMANS WAR, ONLY ON A MUCH, _MUCH_ LARGER SCALE."

Alphys and Undyne paled at that, a _world wide war?!_ That was, _that was-_

"hey guys, we're here." Stretch called out as he and the others came into the living room. 'The others' included himself, Mutt, Skull, Axe, Red and finally Chine and Visor.

Before any greetings or such could even happen, suddenly, a snarl sounded through the room and out of nowhere, a cage of bones appeared around Alphys and Undyne. Trapping them in orange and white mixed bones, sharp bone spikes slowly growing from the inside towards the two trapped monsters. Alphys immediately yelped and clung closely to Undyne who growled protectively, magic flaring as she summoned her spears.

'You'll be fine.'

From there, it was a flurry of panicked movement and thoughts as they quickly found the culprit-

 _Visor_.

It was _Visor_ who had summoned the bone cage. A look of pure, utter fury on his face. His digital eyes replaced with a menacingly glowing target while he bared his teeth maliciously at Undyne and Alphys. " _Y O U ._ " He growled, anger laced into his voice as he stared at them. " _YOU D A R E ?_ " 

It was Alphys who realized it first. Visor was looking at her and Undyne- no, that wasn't right. Visor was looking straight at _her_. 

Not at Undyne, but _her alone_.

'You'll be fine.' Sans had said to her in their messages. 

And for once in a long time. Alphys couldn't bring herself to believe that. Not with Visor looking so murderously at her like that.

Behind her fear and confusion, she had to wonder. Just what did her alternate version _do_ to Visor? To Chine?

Through out everything, Chine hadn't move from his spot. _Also_ staring at her, but with wide-eyed blank eye sockets. But Alphys couldn't focus on him, not with Visor taking the attention of the room with his threatening presence.

* * *

There were pros and cons to gaining a body with instincts and ingrained skills that originally weren't yours.

On one hand, with those instincts and skills, depending on your situation. You could theoretically get through any problematic situation tailored to the original's needs. Like say, originally you couldn't speak a language that the body could. But once you got that body, you could speak it fluently without fail. 

On the other hand, you sometimes don't realize the moments where instinct and skill come in. Sometimes you might notice because you really don't remember having that skill or instinct and usually, you can stop. But other times... You don't notice. Because those other times, the instincts are either small or so _overwhelmingly_ natural to your body that your brain accommodates without a problem. You'd find yourself slipping into that language you couldn't speak before more and more without you noticing until someone pointed it out to you. 

And even if it was pointed out to you, you'd find yourself unable to switch back, because it _feels_ natural to be in that language and you'd temporarily forget anything else. But paradoxically with that, you _know_ you should be able to switch back, that you _can_ but you just... don't.

Because the body reacts to reflexes, triggers and instincts and that often influences the mind that sometimes, you just don't notice it until it just happens or after it happens.

That's exactly what happens to you that moment. Or somewhat in a way. 

It feels like you're outside your own body, watching yourself _move_ without a thought. _Speak_ without a thought. 

" _Y O U._ " You had said with a reflexive fury that you, yourself, _never_ had before. A tingling and overflowing sensation coming from your chest, from your SOUL and from just that, without another thought, summon a _bone cage_ with _inner spikes_ \- " _YOU D A R E?_ " You continue, mouth moving, voice speaking _without_ your conscious thought.

A trigger can be anything, from the smallest detail, to the biggest sign. It could be anything, anything at all.

"VISOR! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"   
"VISOR! PLEASE!"  
"what the fuck-"

You... made a great mistake. You realize as your body fights off the hands suddenly appearing to hold you down. Gaze solely focused on one particular monster. The visor on your face has tinted red, a critical target settling over the bare face of one reptilian scientist which does nothing to help your current situation. Alphys in this universe did not wear a mask, you think to yourself even as your body screams.

" _ALBA SAURIA I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! HOW DARE YOU SHOW YOUR FACE HERE?!_ " 

It's not Alba. It's Alphys. Undertale Alphys, you can recognize her but... Prosthesis Papyrus' reflexes and emotions are _so strong-_

Alphys wasn't wearing a mask. Undertale Alphys didn't wear a mask to hide her identical face to her mother's, that was solely Prosthesis Alphys.

_ "I-I-" You stammer, vision black and unseeing. "I'm Sorry Alphys. I Just... I Can't Look At You. Right Now. Not After- After Everything. I'm Sorry." You don't get how your brother can even look at her without thinking of HER. Maybe he isn't right now, he's being so silent right now. You bury your face into your brother's stomach, cushioned by the medical gown that you both wore while feeling his phalanges gently pat your skull. _

_ "N-No i-it's fine Pa-Papy-Papyrus. I-It's... It's not your f-fault." Alphys' voice is small and weak but so heartbreakingly understanding that you feel so  _ guilty _but... if you put on your Visor and saw her face. You'd only end up screaming and trying to hurt her again. And you don't want that. You can't help yourself, not after what happened, after her mo- no, she wasn't Alphys' mother anymore. After what_ that monster _, did to you, your brother, to Gaster, and even Alphys herself._

_ "... 's not your fault either alph..." Your brother whispers from above you. Palm settling on your head. "it was alba's." Just the sound of her name makes you grit your teeth. _

_ "... I-I Know..."  _

_ Together, they sat in the infirmary in silence. _

_ "I..." Alphys suddenly spoke, "I-I think I-I have a g-good idea on w-what to d-do." Your brother shifts, attention officially caught. Yours as well, but you're hesitant to wear your visor to see. Not yet. You... don't want to hurt Alphys again.  _

Alphys, this Alphys, didn't know anything. And you were just... attacking her.

This was your fault. 

You did this.

_ You did this. It's your fault. You made Papyrus like this. You made Alphys like she was. You made Alba Sauria did what she did. This is your fault- _

"i think that's enough now bro."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ah yes, the rising tension and more added mystery. is it getting tiring yet? will it ever stop being intriguing? will it ever stray into annoyance? who knows. let me know what you all think, i love reading comments.  
> man i need to pace myself when it comes to characters. i already have eighteen individual skeletons but i also have the rest of the undertale cast when they actually show up. stars.  
> also here's everyone in the chat:
> 
> pupper \- Mutt  
> BlueStars \- Blue  
> redhead \- Red  
> streeeetch \- Stretch  
> Librarian \- Green  
> CoolDude!! \- Pyrus  
> EdgeBoss \- Noir  
> hopstepjump \- Hop  
> bullseye \- Skull  
> chacharealsmooth \- Tango  
> chachanotsmooth \- Bones  
> BringingSexyBack \- G  
> HisMajesty \- Black  
> sunnysmile \- Crooks  
> axeuaquestion \- Axe  
> zzZZZzz  \- Classic  
> you'll see visor and chine's Graveyard Chat nicknames in the next chapter probably, and you all obviously know how MewMewCutie is.  
> i hope you guys enjoyed the chapter.


	15. One Step Forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're one step closer to spinal maintenance  
> but in the meanwhile, have some explanations, trauma and confusion

* * *

"WELCOME BACK EVERYONE!" Tango greeted brightly from the entrance of the mansion, accompanied by Bones and Stretch. He waved from the steps as Pyrus stopped the car in front of the mansion, Noir doing the same right behind them. The ride back was rather pleasant as you three talked casually throughout the trip, though you had to admit you feel slightly guilty for switching cars- you'd promised Mutt to tell him all about the Mentum ships but... 

Well, your brother would just have to be there in your stead. He knew just as much as you did about the mentum ships, and probably more at this point, and wouldn't mind telling Mutt about them. Be it history or how they functioned. 

You smile briefly at the sight of the three skeletons, although admittedly seeing Bones and Tango both reminds you of this morning and the temporary panic you'd felt from knowing that others had seen your SOUL. You frown then sigh, shaking your head, no point in dwelling on it- even if you still feel rather uncomfortable from it. 

"Are You Alright Visor?" Blue questions you quietly and you wave him off.

"I AM FINE. JUST TIRED." You gather your bags, insisting Blue didn't have to help you but his stubbornness won out as your words weren't really a lie. You were too tired to out-stubborn the skeleton. Pyrus would have offered help himself but he had to park his car into the garage after you both left, he and Noir both. 

"WE'RE BACK!" Blue declared, grinning as the four of you walked up the steps of the mansion. Mutt was helping your brother with a few of his bags, he probably didn't even hesitate to accept the help, lazy ass. But with Blue helping you, you can't really comment on it. 

"nice jacket. shame you're joining the fur club, classic, hop, and i will just have to enjoy ourselves in our lonesomes." Stretch commented to your brother and Mutt, chuckling at the sight of your brother in his new hoodie. It was rather nice you'll give it that.

He gets a grin back, "sorry stretch, but i'll take fur over any day- hoodies without 'em are fine and all but really. with fur is better. and what about skull? he's not with you, classic and hop in the no fur hood club?" Chine jokes.

All three Papyrus' snorted, "WHILE MY BROTHER DOES ENJOY HOODIES, HE DOESN'T WEAR IT AS MUCH AS THE REST OF THE OTHERS. HE AND I ARE MUCH MORE COMFORTABLE WITH SUITS AND SUCH, AND EVEN WITHOUT OUR USUAL SUITS, WE DON'T TYPICALLY WEAR THE SAME CLOTHING AS THE REST." Bones explained to him. Ah, that made sense, Bones was wearing a similar outfit to yesterday today. Which was a white dress shirt, sleeve garters, suspenders and casual black pants and loafers. 

Mobtale was from the 90s right? With a flare of the 'mob' and such, you guess this was as casual for Bones and to an extent, Skull. 

...

At least Bones looked good in it, you can't say you disapprove. 

Shaking your head, you smile slightly as Tango offered to take a few bags off of your hands. "I'M NOT ENTIRELY HELPLESS OR TIRED TO NOT BEING ABLE TO CARRY FOR MYSELF TANGO. IT IS FINE- AND PLEASE DON'T BE STUBBORN, I'VE ALREADY HAD THIS CONVERSATION WITH BLUE AND I'D RATHER NOT LOSE A SECOND TIME IN A ROW." You tell him, motioning to an innocently smiling Blue.

"WELL, RARELY DO OTHERS LIKE LOSING A SECOND TIME IN A ROW SO VERY WELL." Tango sighed but smiled good-naturedly. 

Small talk aside, you and your brother enter the mansion finally with your bags. "WE WANTED TO GREET YOU BRIEFLY BEFORE WE HAD TO GO COOK! LUNCH SHALL BE PREPARED SOON SO THERE SHOULD BE ENOUGH TIME FOR YOU TO PUT AWAY YOUR NEWLY BOUGHT CLOTHES!" Bones exclaimed, taking Tango's hand in his and waving you and your brother goodbye. "WE SHALL SEE YOU AT LUNCH- LOOK FORWARD TO IT FOR TANGO AND I SHALL CREATE A SPLENDID DISH FROM A RECIPE I FOUND!" 

Tango's smile was practically blinding, you think your visor lowered the brightness just to accommodate. "INDEED!" With that, he and Bones went off towards the kitchen. 

"well lunch is gonna be good." Chine says with amusement as he watched them go before shaking his head, "but yeah i should get these bags into place and shit, wait where's axe 'n crooks? are they at the cottage?" He asked, glancing over to Stretch who nodded.

"ONWARDS TO YOUR ROOM VISOR!" Blue exclaimed, already heading towards the stairs. You were right behind him.

It didn't take long for you to put your new clothes away- it was getting rid of the tags that was particularly annoying but thankfully you had Blue helping you out on that. You don't manage to fill out your dresser, but the drawers have something other than spare blankets and sheets now. Though while putting your new clothes away, you can't help but note on how to hide things in plain sight or just hide things in general within the room.

Everyone had little secret nooks and crannies that held personal items that they'd rather not have everyone see right? And stars knows you have plenty of things you don't want anyone but your brother to see, even your brother perhaps. Despite the thoroughness of knowledge you have on Prosthesis Papyrus, you weren't quite sure in what he had in his arsenal and inventory. 

The wanted poster was bad enough, you were hesitant to let any of the other skeletons to see it. Thankfully Blue wasn't the type to snoop, or at least he didn't seem like one to you. And your belt was tucked away safely, your jacket was with you, you'd tuck it with your belt away for now. 

You'll probably tuck the original clothing away as well seeing as you obviously wouldn't wear most of it daily. Even your boots, as much as you secretly adore them, it was better and probably more comfortable to wear something more manageable for daily uses. Thankfully, you'd just bought suitable shoes and will probably buy more in the near future.

At any rate though, you're more or less 'settled'. 

The room was still unbearably bear though, don't get you wrong the room was lovely and well furnished but... There was not a shred of personality in it. _Your_ personality in it. 

You miss your old room.

You can vaguely remember it. It wasn't as big as your room now, probably just a third of it- and you'd gotten the biggest bedroom in your shared apartment. You had posters, pictures, and more on one section of your wall of most of your interests. Undertale and various other Aus included. Your room only had one small window with a little balcony in it, you think you had a cactus or a small aloe vera on that balcony. You're not sure at the moment, or perhaps little details like that was blurred and lost to you.

It comes to you again, the fact _you weren't **supposed to be here**_.

Not in this universe.

Not in this world.

Not in this room.

Not in this body.

You stagger over to 'your' bed. It's light blue, soft and twice the size you had. You had red covers, or were they brown? Your bed wasn't as soft as this one, but it was _yours_ and this was _all **wrong**_.

"Visor?"

You flinch back as you remember the fact you weren't alone. Blue was still in your room, standing before you and looking oh so concerned with his blue, blue eyes. _You weren't alone, you weren't with your brother. Straighten the **fuck up.**_ You did just that, shaking your head and giving him a curt nod and a hopefully reassuring smile. "I'M FINE." You push away from the bed, standing tall and strong. You were fine. "JUST TIRED. A NAP WOULD BE NICE HOWEVER THAT CAN WAIT UNTIL AFTER LUNCH AND SUCH. OR PERHAPS I WON'T EVEN NEED THE NAP AFTER LUNCH, WE SHALL SEE."

"I- THAT SOUNDS GREAT VISOR. WE SHALL INDEED SEE." Blue agrees with a smile, you don't even need your visor to see the slight strain and uncertainty on his smile. Oh for whatever for? You were fine, completely fine. "TIME TO GO BACK DOWNSTAIRS? IT'S ALMOST LUNCH TIME AFTER ALL!"

"AGREED."

With your clothes properly put away, you follow Blue out of your room. If you linger at the doorway just for a second more than you should, gripping the doorknob a tad too tightly, that was your business.

* * *

Mutt followed Chine back towards the cottage, they could've taken a shortcut but taking the scenic route was always nice. 

They meet with Axe and Crooks back at the cottage, the two skeletons were happy to see Chine, Axe complimenting on Chine's new hoodie and Chine not-so-subtly preening at the praise. His eyes turning into stars once more much to Axe and Crook's amazement and Chine's embarrassment.

Mutt watched Chine fluster over his eyelights while both Axe and Crooks reassured him that Chine's eyelights were nice- which they were. It wasn't everyday that one's eyelights could shape like that, before it'd just been Blue who was capable of that and unknown to most, his own brother could do it as well. Though his brother hated it and did his best to hide the fact they can change shape. Though Mutt was very sure the others suspected he could do it. 

He had to admit though, he wasn't expecting Chine to warm up to Axe and Crooks so quickly and easily. They weren't exactly easy on the eyes after all, even for him and his brother, it took a while to get used to the larger skeletons and acknowledge that not only were they strong, they would rather be peaceful than provoke anyone. 

Though they were all for intimidating people, Axe was at least. He kept the habit of lugging his weapon around and smiling creepily whenever it amused him, he heard from Red on how he tried to intimidate Chine yesterday and Chine hadn't even flinched. He gave Axe a smile and talked to him like nothing was wrong, Red even insisted he looked pretty damn ecstatic.

And Mutt believed him because honestly? It was a good thing that someone didn't find the 'horror' brothers terrifying first time they meet them, just look at how happy they both were with Chine. He's never seen them both warm up to someone else so quickly. 

It didn't long for Chine to put away all of his newly acquired clothing, it didn't fill the wardrobe he had but that didn't matter. Mutt was sure he'd end up filling the wardrobe and the other drawers within the room in time. 

"you want to get rid of the bed?" Mutt questioned, dumbfounded by Chine's words to him. 

Chine nodded, looking completely serious. "i don't need the bed, i'm using the window bed for sleeping. plus, it'd free up a lot of space for the room." He said with a matter-a-fact tone. 

Mutt couldn't really argue with that logic, still though. "if you wanted more room space, there's still rooms open back at the mansion." He pointed out to him.

"no." Wow, no hesitation whatsoever. Chine frowned, looking thoughtful but also resolute. "i'm staying in the cottage. i like this room- i'd like it even better without the bed. it'll just get in the way. i already have the window bed for a place to sleep." He replied firmly.

Mutt sighed, it was clear he wasn't going to change his mind on that. "i'll talk with the others, gotta find a place to put the bed since it's not staying." 

Chine grinned, looking more than satisfied at that.

With that settled, both skeletons left Chine's room to reunite with Axe and Crooks. All four of them would walk back towards the mansion, though on the way Mutt got a message from Classic, informing him that Alphys and Undyne were on their way.

"undyne and alphys are comin' over." Mutt immediately told the largest skeleton brothers. They both tensed before relaxing a tad bit, they still weren't that comfortable around Undyne for obvious reasons. He couldn't blame them, their Undyne was certainly a piece of work... He couldn't _exactly_ see _his_ Undyne doing that, she was a scientist in his universe after all. A violent scientist yes, but still.

Alphys? His Alphys? 

Maybe. But she and his brother got along well enough so it was hard to imagine her doing something like that too, and they hadn't suffered through a famine and shit either so Mutt didn't know. 

There might be a universe out there, where he and his brothers were like Axe and Crooks but Mutt didn't dare think more on that.

Anyway, it was best to inform Axe and Crooks whenever Undyne and or Alphys came over. Mutt hadn't been around for infamous meltdown, but he'd heard enough. From both parties. It was for the best of everyone that Axe and Crooks knew beforehand when Undyne came, surprise visits that involved the three of them normally don't end too well. Sure, Axe and Crooks were more placid and peaceful now but it helped to know what was coming.

"okay," Axe muttered, phalanges already scratching his cheek and slowly climbing up his skull, "thanks bud. when is she arriving?" 

"after lunch, you got time." Mutt reassured him and Crooks who let out a relieved sigh.

Chine glanced between the three of them but didn't voice a question, he gave Crooks a smile when the taller skeleton realized that Chine probably didn't know why they were relieved at the clear warning. 

"AH, YOU MUST BE QUITE CONFUSED CHINE. OUR APOLOGIES, WE... THERE HAS BEEN SOME, TENSION, IN THE PAST. BETWEEN MY BROTHER AND I AGAINST UNDYNE. Especially _Our_ Undyne." Crooks said softly, internally struggling with trying to explain their situation as un-horrifyingly as possible. How could a skeleton gently explain their past as a human killer _and_ eater to someone who didn't know and expect them nothing but understanding from them? Chine was remarkably amicable and even gleeful with him and his brother which was _great_ but... Crooks was afraid that the moment Chine learned of their past, they'd both be shunned.

Axe was similarly afraid and it showed with how he was picking at his cracks, scratching at the edge of the hole in his skull. 

Mutt winced, it had taken a while for the others to admit Axe and Crooks' past to him, his brother, and the others and admittedly. There'd been discourse and questions which lead to the revelation, just a few days after they arrived. And as understanding they'd all come to be in the end, he won't lie and say they were like that at the start. He and his brother were the quickest to get past that, understanding that starvation could change _anyone_. But the disgust and horror had been there at first.

Chine hummed before nodding, "gotcha." He accepted without anything else, "say no more. i'm not gonna ask." He said, glancing over to Axe who paused and stared at him before letting out a deep breath of relief. 

Mutt wasn't too sure what was going on between Axe and Chine, there was a look of understanding. Had something happened between them? 

Well, at least Crooks and Axe are once again relaxed and not worrying. For the moment anyway, when Undyne arrives, they'd pretend to be all relax and calm but do their best to avoid Undyne. They were doing better though, the last time Undyne visited, the three of them were left somewhat alone in a room and there wasn't any damage. Axe didn't have his axe out the whole time and they made awkward small talk.

Progress.

Though thinking about that had Mutt thinking, "'ey chine." He spoke up just as they arrived at the back porch of the mansion, they all paused as Mutt continued. "just to make sure, you and visor don't have anything against undyne or alphys right? doesn't sound like it but, gotta make sure. don't want a freakout on our hands after lunch." They had to know beforehand that Chine and Visor were alright with both Undyne and Alphys coming over.

So far none of them had a grudge against anyone like Axe had against Undyne so that was good, but who knows with Chine and Visor. Their universe was already proven to be significantly different compared to the rest of theirs. 

Chine blinked, looking stunned then thoughtful before shaking his head. "no. my bro and i don't have anythin' against alphys and undyne. not really anyway so don't worry about anything. everything should be fine." He said with an easy grin.

Nothing against Alphys and Undyne, Chine said.

Don't worry about anything, Chine had answered.

Everything should be fine, Chine had said.

Really they should have known better, or at least Mutt and Axe should have at least.

It was really to lie and grin, especially when it came with _them_ in particular. Granted, it's been a while since they really lied about something like _that_ \- but Chine was _a_ Sans, the 'lazy' type as far as they could tell even though there were a lot of differences that they'd witnessed in a short amount of time. Maybe that was why Mutt and Axe accepted the lie so readily without another word, or even thinking otherwise despite everything.

They should've made sure, ask twice. 

Or maybe, they should've asked _Visor_.

 _He_ apparently had something against Undyne and Alphys shockingly enough.

Mutt wasn't around the Axe meltdown, he'd heard it was pretty messy. Axe not even hesitating to attack Undyne the moment he first saw her, even when Axe was forced to stay still, he'd struggled, snarling and swearing violence against her. It took a while, Axe had to be knocked out, he and his brother ended up under close watch before everything made sense as Crooks and Axe finally coughed everything up from their bloody history.

Mutt wasn't around for that. But he was certainly around for _now_.

" _Y O U._ " _Magic, bones, a cage- " YOU D A R E?"_

"VISOR! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"   
"VISOR! PLEASE!"  
"what the fuck- hold him back!" 

Lunch had been so nice too, Mutt thought to himself briefly while he struggled to keep Visor in place- his SOUL was out and turned blue. He wasn't too sure on who made the call, but it was the right call. Still, even with that, it was taking Mutt, Skull, Noir and G to properly hold their furious skeleton's limbs still, preventing him from waving and flailing his arms around to summon more bones. Visor's magic however was still spiking wildly and the bone cage around Alphys and Undyne was shrinking with the sharp bones inside only growing bigger and bigger as moments ticked by.

" _ALBA SAURIA I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! HOW DARE YOU SHOW YOUR FACE HERE?!_ " Visor screamed in their grip, the target symbol on his screen flickering, glitching even as his magic spiked even further.

_Sauria who?_

Did he mean _Alphys?_ Visor had beef with _Alphys_ of all people?

What the fuck happened between Visor and his Alphys?

As Mutt struggled, his gaze manages to shift over to Chine in his struggle and-

Chine was just standing there. Eyelights gone, sockets wide, and mouth set into a tight, line but his face was ultimately distant. Very distant like- Was he- fuck, was he _dissociating?_

Mutt doesn't get to think anymore about it as Undyne is screaming in the bone cage, her spears summoned to form a barricade around her and Alphys in an attempt to stave off and break out of their current prison. However, the bones are _strong_ , and ultimately enough. Visor was LVs higher than Undyne, Undyne was one hell of a powerhouse. But even _she_ was no match for someone who had LVs and magic that outmatched her own. 

_Fuck this was going to get messy-_

* * *

"YOU GET PAID IN WORKING ON THE MACHINE?" Your brother questions, gaze set sternly at Classic. You, yourself, was glancing between him and the delicious fried rice you were eating. Apparently that was the new recipe that Bones was so excited to try out and you had to say, Bones, and Tango since he helped, did a fucking great job. It was enough that you have to divide your attention between consuming it on the spot and listening in to the current conversation.

"yeah. well, kind of. but most of that money is funneled into the machine parts, which are not cheap." Classic replied dryly before shaking his head, "some of it goes into our tax fund and the rest are for personal shit." Yeah that made sense, maintaining the mansion and groups couldn't be cheap whatsoever and the machine they were working on was probably one of the most complicated contraptions to ever exist in this universe. Aside from the CORE at least. "on classification, we're doing an 'energy project' which isn't that too far off the mark. using the machine takes a lot of energy."

"should've seen our electric bill- hell, it's still high as hell." Red snorted, biting at his fork. 

"if ya want to earn some _dough_ quick n' somewhat steady, you can always help out with the machine. the pay varies on how much work ya put in it, and you have to sign a contract to actually get money- not to mention set up a bank account but we're working on that." Skull said, winking at you as he held a piece of bread. The groans of your brothers and the other Papyrus/Sans is once again wonderful. You can get used to this. _~~Youshouldn't,you'renotsupposedto **behere.**~~_

"BUT IF YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING ELSE AND GET PAID ANOTHER WAY, FEEL FREE TO DO SO. A LOT OF US HAVE OTHER JOBS THAT WE CAN GET PAID WITH, MOSTLY THINGS THAT WE ENJOY AND CAN EFFICIENTLY DO WITHOUT PROBLEM!" Tango beamed, "I MYSELF AM A DANCE INSTRUCTOR AS WELL AS AN OCCASIONAL ACTOR TO THE LOCAL THEATRE WITHIN THE TOWN! THOUGH CURRENTLY I AM ON BREAK AND NO ONE HAS HIRED ME FOR INSTRUCTING." 

Aw wasn't that nice for Tango. Dance instructor huh? Been a while since you've danced, and you had some experienced in teaching. Well, _tutoring_ really. Back when you started saving as much money as you can as a teen, tutoring anyone who wanted to be tutored, doing odd jobs here and there, some less savory than the next but you got paid in the end. Not to mention the numerous jobs you had the moment you'd been kicked out, trying to find a stable job and an affordable apartment that was _enough_ for you and your brother even though he wasn't with you at that moment...

It worked out though, and right now you were a skeleton with new skills and hey- you could _work on the machine_. It probably wouldn't be the only thing you'd do to get paid, your brother would probably find another way to get more money too, but it was a start. 

"sounds great. but there's more to this isn't there? earlier while we were shoppin', pyrus' implied a lot when he asked we keep the machine on the down low. which does make sense, knowledge that we're from another universe shouldn't be announced from the high mountains and back but the fact that we're gettin' paid to work on the machine but havin' it classified as an 'energy project'..." You trailed off, thoughtful but aware of the gazes you attracted with your words. ~~_You don't mention Gaster or the brief moment of weakness in the shop,thankfully Pyrus and Blue don't mention it either._~~

Your brother looked solemn, probably wondering the same questions you had in your head. Everyone else though? They weren't bemused exactly, but they looked expectant and accepting. Like they knew you'd suspect there was something more, which they probably did. No, they _definitely_ did.

"THE FIRST TIME THE MACHINE MALFUNCTIONED, PART OF THE REASON WHY IS BECAUSE THERE WASN'T ENOUGH POWER TO FUEL IT. IT KNOCKED THE OLD HOUSE ALONG WITH THE ENTIRE TOWN'S ELECTRIC GRID OUT. IT CAUSED QUITE THE PANIC, NOT JUST FOR US, BUT FOR OUR NEIGHBORS AS WELL." Noir started, surprising you and your brother. "THE SECOND TIME IT HAPPENED, THE SAME THING OCCURRED. AND BY THAT TIME, WE WERE PLANNING TO MOVE OUT OF THE AREA AS THERE WERE SIMPLY TOO MANY OF US IN SUCH A SMALL ABODE TO BE TOLERATED. WHICH IS WHY WE BOUGHT THIS MANSION WHICH WAS FORTUNATELY AVAILABLE TO US. THE MANSION AND COTTAGE WAS A PERFECT AREA FOR US, SPACIOUS, LUXURIOUS, AND UTTERLY ISOLATED FROM OTHERS AS WE HAVE NO NEIGHBORS WHATSOEVER."

"we're free to make as much noise as we wanted. had noise complaints from other neighbors when we worked on the machine, even from the basement. didn't have the greatest sound proofing back then." Axe muttered by your side, "not to mention accusations for me and my bro." Oof, right. With how Axe and Crooks looked, you wouldn't be surprised that they'd get bothered about it by other people who took their appearances as... less than welcoming.

"YOU DIDN'T WANT TO BE BOTHERED BY OTHERS, AND THE MACHINE TOOK TOO MUCH POWER TO ACTUALLY WORK." Your brother concluded, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "WHY NOT TAKE THE MACHINE BACK TOWARDS THE CORE? SURELY THERE WOULD BE MORE THAN ENOUGH POWER PROVIDED FROM THERE? OR IS THE MACHINE SIMPLY THAT POWERFUL?" With how it was taking monsters from across the multiverse, as well as somehow dragged you _and_ your brother in the _wrong bodies_... Yeah the machine probably took a lot of power. 

But...

"but when we got here yesterday, there was power on in the basement." You mentioned, looking puzzled.

"we got the machine hooked up on separate generators." Hop told you, "a _lot_ of generators." Now that he mentioned it, there _had_ been a _lot_ of wires that lead somewhere else, but you hadn't focused on that. "and nah, we can't really take it back to the core. too risky. humans got interested in the core and by the time we got here and moved, the core's been open to humans. lots of scientists settled in alphys' old lab and made some expansions and renovations. it's not a co-owned property of monsters _and_ humans, part of the treaty for monsters to stay up here." 

It clicked right there and then. "you really don't want humans to know about the machine." You murmured, the looks you get just confirmed it. "the power outs the machine started probably caught attention you didn't want, well, _more_ attention that you didn't want. you moved places to a more remote area and brought the machine with you. and messing with that machine, repairing it over and over again, trying to get it right- that's not cheap. which is why you mentioned a contract, but with the secrecy and shit you classified the machine as an 'energy project' so it wouldn't be too suspicious if anyone tried digging."

"IT COULD ALSO EXPLAIN THE POWER OUTAGES TO WHOEVER ASKED, ASSUMING THEY EVEN ASKED." Your brother added in, coming to the same conclusion.

"They did ask, there were some government officials that came." Green confirmed, sipping his glass of water. "Though contract wasn't officially created until after we moved and after they came... The existence of the machine is a tight knit secret, a select few outside of the residences of the mansion know about it and the fact we're from other universes."

"BUT HOW DOES IT EXPLAIN THE FACT THERE ARE SUDDENLY MORE SKELETONS AROUND?" Your brother questioned, you blink, you hadn't even thought about that question. "IF THINGS ARE SIMILAR HERE, THEN THE FACT THERE ARE MORE SKELETONS AROUND CANNOT BE AVOIDED. SKELETON MONSTERS ARE EXTREMELY RARE BACK IN OUR UNIVERSE, IS IT THE SAME HERE?" He questioned, looking at Classic and Pyrus, the _Original_ Sans and Papyrus. A chance to learn more of the lore of the game.

Classic snorted and nodded, "yeah, guess the near extinction of our race of subspecies is the same in almost every universe." He sighed with a somewhat bitter look on his face. It was mirrored by the others but you kept your gaze on the table. You guess it is, though you hadn't exactly known it originally. In Prosthesis AU there were few other skeletons sure, but yeah, the skeleton monster subspecies were near extinct. Though was it for the same reason here? Were they hunted down in the war in Undertale too? 

Another sin to add in your ever growing list. A near-complete genocide of an intellectual subspecies.

"It's an open secret that us skeletons aren't common and probably aren't suppose to be here." G said, playing with his food with an amused look on his face. "The other monsters barely know about us already, I've heard rumors that they think that we were sealed off in a different secret area of the Underground and that dear old Classic and Pyrus managed to avoid being sealed off with the rest of us because of numerous reasons. But even then, they probably won't say anything to the humans. Monster solidarity and what not... still, that rumor of being sealed off in a different area does merit some thought as a good cover story. We've managed to stay under the radar for a good while now, thanks to Alphys and such."

"and as for why we keep popping up- eh, we're good at hiding and staying out of the spotlight." Mutt added, smiling lazily, pushing away his finished plate. 

Okay, a lot of things were adding up. Good to learn during this lunch. 

Lunch continued, with the discussion of the contract and what it held for you and your brother should you both sign it. And you both _were_ going to sign it. You had the ability to help with the machine after all. 

Essentially you were not allowed to speak of the Machine to anyone who didn't know about it, especially to nosy humans and such. You weren't allowed to reveal the fact you were from another universe to anyone who didn't know. You'd get paid from working on the machine, the amount of money is staggering but you realize a lot of it would be cut down for the machine itself as well as other technicalities. You'd still end up with a fair amount of money for yourself but if you wanted something really expensive or something, you'd need another job or two or just another way to pay money. 

So basically the contract was partially a work contract as well as an NDA.

Simple enough for you and your brother.

"it'll be nice to have two new hands on board." Skull said as he, Mutt, Axe, Red, Stretch, and Classic lead you and your brother towards the basement. "thankfully i don't think we have to do much aside from fix the broken shit inside the machine and replace a few metal sheets. we gotta wait on new circuit boards though, your arrival fried our last ones."

"alph will work on those after she sets the paperwork for you two." Classic mentioned as you all descended the steps into the basement. 

It's as spacious as you saw it yesterday, and the machine that brought you here was not that far from the stairs. "we renovated the basement a lot, costed big bucks but worth it in the end." Red gruffed, tapping the wall, "place is soundproof and insulated. plus we got the generators running whenever we have the machine booted. at least whenever we try to use it to open a way back to our universes. most of the time it doesn't work, we're still trying to figure out where the fuck we can even _find_ our universes, there's the risk of opening to one that ain't ours. but then there's the times where it _does_ work but..." He mimes an explosion and motions to you two.

"YOU INSTEAD GET SKELETONS." Visor finished with a deadpan, rolling his eyes when Red gave him finger pointed at him with a rough smile.

"bingo."

"'s been a lot of work, but, we're getting closer and closer. we managed to only get you two here and the machine didn't _totally_ explode. it's intact and can be repaired." Stretch said, standing before the machine.

It was big, probably a few heads taller than _Crooks_ , which was definitely saying something. And it was just as wide. Was it always that big? In the game you mean. 

"so what's the problem? aside from the energy problem- how many generators do you use for this anyway?" You ask, tracing the wires towards their source, a door off to the side. Axe sees your curiosity and chuckles.

He motions you to follow him towards the door, and you do, your brother trails behind you with the others. "a _lot_." Axe murmured, unlocking the door and- yeah okay, that's a _lot_ of generators. Seven big generators and fourteen medium ones. "they're all solar charged, tried to do gas but- more expensive in the long run. better to just get solar powered ones, at least if they explode, short circuit, or break, we can fix them or maybe even make them better. ten of the mediums short circuited yesterday. the big ones are running fine, probably low on power, but we'll take 'em outside when its the most sunny." 

"holy stars." You mutter before shaking your head. "how much power does the machine use anyway?"

Classic sighed, rubbing his face with some frustration. "a fuck ton- at least when we try to open a portal to another universe. if we don't, it's not that bad, could just run on one giant generator. but if we try to open a portal, we _have_ to make sure that everything is fully charged. otherwise it won't work." He checked his phone before smiling, "i'll be right back, alphys 'n undyne are coming." He said, heading back upstairs.

"I LOOK FORWARD TO MEETING THEM, WE'LL COME BACK UPSTAIRS AFTER THEY ARRIVE." Visor informed him as he left, making him nod and everything. Alphys and Undyne...

You feel like you're forgetting something, you can't remember what it is.

You don't pay it much mind until later on, when you and the others decide to walk upstairs to finally greet and meet the famous fish-lizard couple that the fandom loves to bits.

" _Y O U._ "

 _oh_ , you thought to yourself as you finally remember what it is you've forgotten when your body freezes up at the sight of Alphys' face and your brother was suddenly filled with a kind of rage you've never seen in him before.

" _YOU D A R E?_ "

How the _fuck_ could you forget the fact that Undertale Alphys _didn't_ wear a **_fucking mask?!_** That Prosthesis Papyrus and Sans would be _triggered_ by her **_face?!_** You _wrote that down_ , you _made that a **thing! How the fuck could you forget?!**_

It hadn't correlated to you, or even _occur_ to you, that Alphys from Undertale wasn't wearing a mask. 

_ You can't move. _

No, it wasn't just that.

" _ALBA SAURIA I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! HOW DARE YOU SHOW YOUR FACE HERE?!_ " 

It was the fact she had _Alba Sauria's **face**_ that slipped your mind.

_ Move. _

It was Alphys' face.

_ M o v e. _

Alba had _Alphys'_ face, not the other way around. 

You don't know who turned your brother's SOUL blue, you'll have to thank them later as you finally _move_. You're suddenly in front of your brother - _did you just take a shortcut?_ \- and _slap_ him, forcing his head to the side and silencing the chaos in the room.

And just like that. It's quiet. And the bones freeze in place, no longer moving, no longer growing. They just, stopped. "i think that's enough now bro." You say, you feel like you sound a bit distant. But you were right there weren't you? "it's just alphys. it's not even _our_ alphys. you're embarrassing yourself." 

You feel everyone's eyes on you, it burns. But you're only focused on your brother, who slowly turns to look at you and only at you. Don't look at Alphys. _look at me. only at me bro, come on. just focus on me._ "stop being a fucking wuss and get the fuck out of the room if you can't handle shit bro." He couldn't stay in this room, not while he wanted to see and not while Alphys was around without something covering her face.

"..." Without a word, your brother relaxes, tenses, relaxes, tenses and finally he looks away. Gaze firmly at the floor- there's a sigh of relief made by everyone in the room, your brother's dangerous bone cage was gone. "Get The Fuck Off Of Me." Your brother whispers to the others who were holding him back. His SOUL turns white, they let go and he turns in place to storm out of the room. 

" _go to your room!_ " You call out to him.

" _DON'T FUCKING TELL ME WHAT TO DO YOU BASTARD!_ " He shouts back. 

He'll be fine.

You on the other hand?

Your hoodie is suddenly tugged back and you find yourself in the air, an angry fish woman snarling in your face. "oh hey undyne." You say, still feeling distant. "nice to finally meet'cha."

"Nice? _Nice? NICE?!_ " Undyne repeated, getting louder each time. " _WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?! YOUR BROTHER, ATTACKED ME AND ALPHYS!!"_

"yeah he did."

" _IS **THAT** ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY?!_"

"probably."

" _WHY YOU-_ " You're snatched from her hold, there's someone strong holding you now. His deep voice is familiar and kind of comforting, it still feels a bit distant though.

" _calm down_ undyne." Axe.

"CALM DOWN?! _CALM DOWN?!_ ALPHYS AND I WERE FUCKING ATTACKED! I COULD UNDERSTAND ME, BUT HE PUT ALPHYS IN DANGER! WHAT THE HELL SANS?! I THOUGHT YOU SAID IT WAS SAFE FOR US TO COME OVER!! THAT EVERYTHING WAS GOING TO BE FINE AND THAT THEY'D BE FINE WITH US OVER!!"

"i-i did i swear!" 

"THEN WHAT THE _FUCK_ WAS THAT?!"

You feel like you're drifting off as everything gets louder but a bit more muffled around you, the arms around your torso keep you in their hold though. Axe was warm, did he know that? How were skeletons warm? Oh, look, there was Mutt's face. Mutt was standing right in front of you.

"chine. chine? chine, come in buddy." He says, trying to gain your attention. He has it. "chine, what the hell was that? i thought you said you and visor were fine with undyne and alphys coming over. that was far from fine."

"yeah it wasn't." You agree, "i didn't realize that alphys wasn't wearing a mask here was all. we're not used to looking at her face." 

"o-oh..."  
"ARE YOU SAYING MY GIRLFRIEND'S FUCKING UGLY?!"

"no, she's fine. she just looks too much like her mother is all."

* * *

"m-my _what?!_ " Alphys yelped, looking wide eyed at the dazed skeleton in Axe's arms. He doesn't even _look_ at her direction. Or rather, he was purposefully was avoiding looking at her. Gaze drifting off into the distance as he looked at the wall. 

"your mom. you look too much like alba. i'm sorry alph, but neither of us can look at you right now. my bro especially."

Thoughts were flying all over Alphys' head, but the main one was... 

They... knew her _mother? Her mother's name, was Alba?_

Her- her _other's mother_ had done something to warrant Visor's violent reaction?

Dread settled in her stomach, this type of dread felt even worse than the one she felt while trapped in Visor's bone cage.

"What," Undyne started, quiet now and looking stunned. "What did Alphys' mom _do?_ "

Chine didn't answer, his eyelights gone as he whispered. " _... a lot.._ "

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't we love angst first thing in the morning?  
> well technically right now it's afternoon but hey!  
> i've managed to update!  
> sorry it took a while guys, admittedly had some problems with this chapter but hey!  
> we're back on track.  
> next chapter is going to be a bit better, maybe a bit longer, and probably involve a time skip just so we can get to the spinal maintenance chapter  
> unfortunately my want for a halloween chapter might have to be a separate one shot or maybe just very very late because at the pace i'm at, i doubt i'll be able to post a halloween themed chapter any time soon.
> 
> at any rate, i hope you enjoyed. please do leave comments, i love reading every one, no matter how short or repetitive it might be. comments help keep me afloat.


	16. Music Soothes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait, got some stuff happening in the background here.  
> on the upside of things i've discovered the wondrous world of dnd and i've been having fun with that. 
> 
> and life just gets in the way y'know?  
> at any rate, hope you enjoy :)

* * *

Storming up the stairs, you force the door open- utterly unnecessary but you don't care. You slam the door behind you, chest heaving and posture so very tense.

You're shaking.

A hiccup escapes your mouth and you're shaking so badly that you think you can hear your bones rattling- which upsets you even more. You back against the door, sliding down as the turmoil continues.

You _didn't mean to attack Alphys and Undyne._ You _swear_ , you swear to the fucking _stars_ \- you didn't mean it. You- _You-_

You just _**moved**_ , without thinking, without control, and all of a sudden you were watching yourself- no, watching _Papyrus_ screaming at them both and summoning bones, forming the cage. 

_Watching_ as ' _Papyrus_ ' seethed, burned with great fury. 

It was _terrifying_. 

Was- Was Papyrus _inside you?_

Dormant underneath your psyche, trapped within the head that should be his completely, unable to do anything because of _you?_

Unable to do _anything_ until emotions surged enough from instinctive moments that he wrestled control from you? 

Those emotions, those words- they certainly _weren't yours_. They were _his_.

This body _wasn't **yours**_.

"I'm Sorry." 

You're so sorry.

"I'm So-" You choke, your vision glitching as magic-made liquid spills underneath your screen and rolls down your face. "Please- _Stars-_ " You press your hands into your skull, a sob slips out and you're choking on your sins. You're having a difficult time breathing as your mind start spiraling, or maybe you were just trying to look for _him_ in your head. You're screaming inside your mind, apologizing over and over and over again to Papyrus who never replies much to your terrified horror.

Your chest begins to ache, your head starts to _hurt_ and you're laying curled on the floor, wishing to the stars above...

_ "almost done paps."  
"I CAN SEE THAT... ARE YOU SURE THIS WILL WORK BROTHER?"  
"no but how else are we gonna find out without testing it?"  
"WE'VE TESTED THIS MULTIPLE TIMES WITH VARYING RESULTS, MOSTLY BAD RESULTS. WE HAD TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE PLASMA DISK LAST TIME! AN ENTIRE. PLASMA DISK!!"  
"that was my bad."  
"YOUR BAD MY BONEY BEHIND! THAT WAS ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT! I TOLD YOU WE SHOULD'VE USED THE PLATINUM VERSION BUT NOOO- DON'T LISTEN TO PAPYRUS! IT'S NOT LIKE HE'S THE **ENGINEER BETWEEN THE TWO OF US!!!** "   
"hey hey, my bad! i just said that. look like i said before, we couldn't get the platinum ioncells in time okay? fucking stars papyrus calm your tits."  
"WE DON'T HAVE TITS."  
"not normally."  
SMACK  
"ow! oi!"  
"DON'T YOU DARE CHANGE THE SUBJECT TO SOMETHING INAPPROPRIATE! FOCUS ON THE MATTER AT HAND!"  
"oh i would but there's an annoying skeleton chattering and distracting me."  
"YOU ARE SO- WAIT, IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE HAPPENING?"  
"huh? what's hap- no. what? no, no no no- papyrus the crank!"  
"I'M ON IT! HRGK- HGUH- IT- WON'T- BUDGE!! AH! THE MAGIC CIRCULATION IS TOO STRONG! I CAN'T TURN IT!"  
"shit shit hold on- no, no, this can't- no wait, i think we have something! it's latched to something, i think we have him!"  
"ARE YOU SURE ABOUT THAT?! WHAT IF IT'S SOMETHING ELSE?!"  
"only one way to find out!"  
"SANS- SANS NO!!"  
"hold on-"  
"SANS-"  
"papyrus-" _

_ D A R K N E S S _

* * *

"chine? _chine?_ " Shifting the quiet skeletons in his arms, Axe gave him a worried look as Chine didn't respond to Mutt's prompting. 

His sockets were blank, eyelights gone and for all intents and purposes, it seemed like he'd just passed out. Except his sockets were still wide open, his face was stuck in a faintly horrified but resigned look and his breathing was deep but shaky. "IS- Is He Alright?" Pyrus questioned, taking long steps to Axe's side, crouching slightly to check on unresponsive monster limp in Axe's arms.

Mutt backed away to let Pyrus check on Chine who barely reacted to Pyrus' gentle prodding. "shit. i think he's hard dissociating right now." He muttered to both himself and the others. Axe tightened the grip around Chine.

"what do we do?" 

"AXE, LAY HIM ON THE COUCH." Black ordered, Axe hesitated but seeing everyone else's agreeing nod, he complied. Shuffling over to the nearby couch to carefully lay Chine on the couch, cushioning his head with a couch pillow. The other skeleton hardly twitched. Now staring blankly at the ceiling instead of the floor, or really, they had no idea where he was staring at without his eyelights. 

Axe sat down by the couch on the carpeted floor, keeping close to his housemate. He's only known Chine for nearly two days now, not even _full_ two days, but he already saw him as a friend. He and his brother both. It may be an early assessment, but as far as they both knew, Chine was a good skeleton that didn't mind or judge their terrifying looks. And until Chine did something personally offensive to them, or maybe even learn of their past, they would treat him as a good friend. 

Plus he was their housemate, they had accepted him into their home.

"I-Is... Is he going t-t-to be o-okay?" Alphys asked quietly, hunched over more than usual and nervously fidgeting with the edge of her shirt. She felt guilty for triggering such a reaction for both him and his brother. Logically, she shouldn't be- she wasn't Chine's Alphys, or rather she wasn't his Alphys' _mother_. She was not at fault here. And yet, she couldn't help it nonetheless.

She finally understood on how Undyne felt with Axe and Crooks. 

"PHYSICALLY? HE'S FINE. MENTALLY? WELL, OBVIOUSLY NOT." Black huffed as he glanced over the spaced out skeleton on the couch.

Alphys winced, hunching in on herself a bit more as she gazed helplessly at the unresponsive Chine. She yelped when familiar strong arms wrapped themselves around her, easily lifting her into the air once more. "U-Undyne?!" She squeaked, squirming in her girlfriend's grip. "W-What're you-" 

"It's not your fault Alphys." She froze as Undyne leveled her a serious look, "Whatever happened with them, it's not your fault. Really it's not, it sounds like whatever happened with them was fucking terrible yeah but- it's really not your fault. Not even the other you." Of course Undyne would've known how she was feeling right now, it still caught Alphys off guard, enough that tears prickled her eyes and a small weak noise escaped her throat.

From the side, Classic came up, giving her a reassuring look. "yeah alph, she's right. you shouldn't be feeling guilty for... _this_. 's just one big accident and misunderstanding. should've occurred to us to ask more 'bout their alphys and shit." 

"though i would've thought that the two 'a them would've told us 'bout their problem with alphys' face." Red muttered aloud, jolting in place when he realized what he said. He gulped at the fierce glare that Undyne sent him. She wasn't as scary as his Undyne sure but still, she was one strong fish woman who was protective over her nerdy lover. "i mean- shouldn't they just told us from the get go?"

G was the one to answer him, "Not necessarily." He rubbed his chin as he glanced over to Chine, "It probably didn't occur to them that- well, that sweet Alphys here had her face bare for them to see. Presumably their Alphys would be wearing a mask or something to cover her face, which would be normal to them." 

"'n since it was normal to them, they just kind of assumed it was the same here. even if shit is different." Skull continued, following G and putting the pieces together. "just look at me an' my bro, remember when we just flat out asked ya'll where your guns were and all that crap? we just assumed you all had guns and other weapons on ya even though it was clear things were different here. and tha's just the one example i thought in my head for my bro and i." He points out, glancing to the others, knowing very well that they themselves had experienced something similar even if it was a bit different.

But point was, it was hard to mention something different until you actually noticed or know about it. Chine and Visor had no reason to think otherwise that Alphys, Classic's Alphys, wouldn't be wearing a mask even though the surroundings probably said otherwise. It just never came to mind.

Understanding spread through the room, that explained a lot. And yet there were still plenty of questions floating around and the only two skeletons that they could get answers from were both currently unable to answer. One locked in their room upstairs, and the other dissociating on the living room couch. 

Though there was no real guarantee that either would even answer if both could, not now at least. 

Alphys squirmed in Undyne's gripped, feeling a bit better however she was unable to shake it off completely. "I-I... I have to w-w-wonder on just w-what my, my-no, what th-their Alphys' m-m-mother did to g-grant that k-kind of r-reaction." She pondered quietly, nervously scratching her arm as she remembers the utter fury Visor had on his face. A target on the screen of his eyes and a snarl on his scarred face. She sees Chine laying limp and still on the couch, quiet and dissociating. 

' _... a lot.._ ' Chine had whispered before they fully lost him. Just how much was _a lot?_ What had happened? It had to be something truly damning for both of them to end up like this at the mere _sight_ of her face- it was going to take a while to build up her self-esteem again but that didn't matter.

Alphys has never known her mother, not in this universe at least. She had died and dusted when Alphys was incredibly young, she barely even remembered what she looked like and had no photo of her either. But she's heard enough from others who knew about her, she wasn't a bad monster. She'd been a teacher, and as far as Alphys could remember now that she was a tad bit calmer- her own mother's name wasn't Alba. It was Dina. 

However monsters had told her before that she looked uncannily like her mother, so Chine's comment of her looking too much like her mother wasn't far off from the mark.

So it wasn't only personality and world that could change in other universes, Alphys thought to herself, names could change as well. 

"WHATEVER IT WAS, IT CERTAINLY AFFECTED THEM GREATLY." Pyrus sighed, glancing over to her, "I AM VERY SORRY ALPHYS. UNDYNE. THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A JOYOUS AND PROGRESSIVE VISIT! AND I HAVE EVEN NEGLECTED TO ASK! ARE YOU BOTH ALRIGHT? ARE YOU HURT?!" How could he have forgotten to ask?! 

They both gave him a reassuring look, "It's fine Paps! We're both good- I protective Alphys just fine and I didn't even get a scratch! I'm just that awesome!" Undyne boasted, grinning widely at her worried friend, just to reassure him, she even flexed one arm. She'd flex both but that would mean putting down her girlfriend. 

Truthfully however, she was almost kind of lucky that she and Alphys got out of that cage without getting hurt. Sure she'd done a frankly _fucking incredible_ job of protecting Alphys and herself, the cage could have completely crushed _and_ impaled them both. The bones themselves were really strong, which she was impressed with now that she and Alphys were safe.

When things were calmer and if both Chine and Visor were fine, Undyne definitely wanted to try and fight them. She's almost fought with all of the skeletons now- kind of. The lazier bunch were obviously avoiding doing that but one day she'd get them. She already went against Mutt that one time, however short that was- speaking of which she wanted a damn rematch.

Not the time though.

"Y-Yeah Pa-uh, Pyrus! W-We're fine. U-Undyne d-d-did keep me p-protected. She's really amazing y-y'know." 

The mood lightens a bit from that and Pyrus sighed in relief, happy to know that his two friends were doing just fine despite what happened.

Still, what were they to do now that Chine was practically comatose on the couch and Visor was keeping to himself within his room?

They debated on what to do next, for a brief moment no one really knew before Black said to inform the others of what happened. It was wasn't much, but it was at least _something_ to do in lieu of this semi-awkward period. Alphys and Undyne decided to cut the visit short, it was unfortunate but probably for the best- the skeletons would inform them when they talked with both Chine and Visor about it, not promising any concise or precise answers but they did promise on talking on a compromise or something to them about Alphys.

Alphys didn't want to end up bothering them with her presence, or rather her face, in the near future again but at some point they three of them would have to face each other one way or another. Undyne really didn't want to think on how that facing might end up, she just silently vowed to try her best to be by Alphys' side whenever Visor and Chine were around. 

The ensuing discussion within their group chat devolved into theories of what happened between the alternate version of Alphys' mother 'Alba' and with their two alternates.

redhead  
maybe albas the one who put the hole on visors face

Bluestars  
RED!!!!

EdgeBoss  
AN UNFORTUNATE BUT PROBABLE THEORY

pupper  
what so it's an opposite but kinda worse undyne n axe situation

axeuaquestion  
i really fucking hope not

sunnysmile  
I TOO HOPE OTHERWISE BUT I CANNOT REFUTE THE POSSIBILITY OF THAT

chacharealsmooth  
WE REALLY DO NOT KNOW MUCH ABOUT THEM ASIDE FROM WHAT LITTLE WE'VE GARNERED

hopstepjump  
hey it's only been what  
2 days  
we got time to learn

HisMajesty   
AT ANY RATE, WE MUST FIGURE OUT ON WHAT TO DO WITH CHINE.  
IT HAS BEEN HALF AN HOUR AND IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE HE'S GETTING ANY BETTER.  
HE HASN'T SNAPPED OUT OF IT WHATSOEVER.

streeeech  
it takes time to come down from dissociating black  
leave him alone

HisMajesty  
I HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING.

chachanotsmooth  
BLACK!!

axeuaquestion  
not anything too bad  
he snapped his fingers above chine but nothing

chacharealsmooth  
:(  
WILL HE BE OKAY? AND WHAT ABOUT VISOR? IS HE OKAY?

chachanotsmooth  
THEY WILL BE! HOPEFULLY AT LEAST.

BringingSexyBack  
Haven't seen him since he stormed up to his room.  
Did anyone check on him?

Bluestars  
GREEN AND I STOPPED BY HIS ROOM! WE KNOCKED ON HIS DOOR BUT HE HASN'T ANSWERED US...  
I HOPE HE'S OKAY.

Librarian  
Hopefully.  
And obviously his door was locked as well so we couldn't look in to check on him.

bullseye  
they both need some time  
it's only been half an hour

It certainly seemed longer, Axe thought to himself as he glanced back to the unmoving skeleton on the couch. He hasn't even moved a twitch since he'd been laid there. Not even to blink- which he didn't really need to but still. He was so still, his eyes so blank and empty and his breath was near unnoticeable. Axe had to remind himself that all Chine was dissociating not...

Not _falling down_.

He was fine- physically at least.

Mentally? Axe didn't really know but the fact that Chine was laying unresponsive for more than thirty minutes straight at this point wasn't painting a particularly good picture. And that was just Chine- Visor was a whole other deal.

Speaking of him...

"VISOR?" Black questioned aloud causing Axe to stand and whirl to find the skeleton.

There at the entrance, Visor stood, a hand on the frame and screen oddly blank. He looks tired for a moment, a bit lost and nervous even. "Black?" Visor murmured to himself before shaking his head, "IS IT JUST YOU IN HERE BLACK? OR IS THERE SOMEONE ELSE? DO YOU KNOW WHERE MY BROTHER IS?" He asked.

Black shared a confused look with Axe, "uh, i'm here?" He said making Visor look at him, or at least his general direction. "chine's on the couch. visor wha-"

"SO ALPHYS IS NOT HERE?" Visor interrupted him, unable to hide the relief from his voice. Immediately his hand leaves the door frame and towards his visor, "AHEM, MY APOLOGIES. I WAS WARY TO KNOW IF ALPHYS WAS STILL HERE AND TURNED OFF MY VISOR JUST IN CASE. I... Did Not Want To Attack Her Once More." He admitted softly as symbols flashed on his visual screen. It didn't take long for his digital eyelights to return.

Ah, that explained it. 

"SHE AND UNDYNE LEFT." Black informed him as Visor finally left from the doorway and walked to the couch. "SHE GAVE HER APOLOGIES BEFORE SHE LEFT."

Visor grimaced both at the sight of his blank-faced brother and at Black's words, "SHE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO SAY THAT- I- IT WAS MY FAULT FROM THE BEGINNING. SHE DID NOT KNOW AND I... _OVERREACTED._ " Overreacted? That was an _understatement_. "TELL HER I AM SORRY, UNDYNE AS WELL. I DID NOT MEAN TO- To Attack Her. She Just..." Visor trailed off, digital eyes furrowing and his hands curling, shaking slightly.

"'looked too much like her mother'?" Axe hesitantly said, remembering Chine's words before he completely drifted off into oblivion. 

The tall skeleton jolted in place, looking shocked, "I- Yes." He glanced over to Chine, "Did He- HOW MUCH HAS HE SAID BEFORE HE..." He waved over Chine's unfortunate state.

Black crossed his arms, "NOTHING ASIDE FROM THAT. AFTER THAT, WE LOST HIM. HOW MUCH LONGER DO YOU FARE HE'LL STAY LIKE THIS?"

Visor frowned, looking thoughtful before he reached over to Chine. "uh-" Axe watched somewhat pensively as Chine's brother lifted him from the couch, holding him up by his armpits. Visor seemed to scowl at him.

"HOW LONG ARE YOU GOING TO BE IN THIS PATHETIC STATE BROTHER?" Visor asked harshly to Chine's unresponsive face. Axe tensed when Visor shook his brother in the air, as if that would actually _help_ the dissociating skeleton. "YOU CAN'T STAY LIKE THIS FOREVER COWARD- WAKE THE FUCK UP!" Shifting his hands, he freed one hand, flexing it and rearing it back-

Only he was stopped. A hand gripping his wrist tightly the point of near-pain.

" _visor._ " Visor paused, looking at him. Axe stood by his side, looking at him straight in the eye with a strained smile on his face. His red eye glowing intensely. "don't think that's a good idea pal." Axe whispered quietly, at the side, Black shivered as he clutched the phone in his hand. 

Visor scowled at him, "... LET GO OF ME." He roughly pulled his hand back from Axe's tight grip. "HE'S CERTAINLY OUT OF IT. USUALLY BY THIS TIME HE'D BE CURSING AT ME TO PUT HIM DOWN." He sets Chine down on the couch, watching him flop on his side. 

Axe took in a deep breath and took a step closer to the couch to fix Chine, having him sit up without falling over. "what do we do? something that doesn't involve _hitting him_." 

"..." Visor looked away, a loading circle on his screen. It turned into a lightbulb as he turned back to him, "HAVE HIM LISTEN TO SOME MUSIC. SOMETHING SOOTHING BUT ANY TYPE WORKS AS LONG AS IT'S MUSIC." 

Both Axe and Black perked, music he said?

* * *

_ "Sans, Papyrus. This is Alba."  _

_ You blink at the monster in front of you and your brother, hands held together tight as the female lizard monster smiled back at you both. It's a polite kind of smile, kind almost, Alba's glasses glint with light and you can't really see her eyes in this lighting. But she seems nice at the very least. _

_ She looks between you and Papyrus, your little brother tries not to hide behind you, his eyelights glitching slightly on his cracked screen. "A pleasure to meet you both Sans, Papyrus. I have a daughter who you'd both get along with, do you want to meet her?" She asks, quietly. They can't be loud, even if no one was around. Too risky to be loud and attention grabbing, not after everything. _

_ You only nod to her, you can't find it in yourself to talk to her yet. Your brother follows. You're both quiet and tired, you just want to leave the area. You've all stayed long enough.  _

_ "You have a daughter? Ah, times have changed haven't they Alba?"  _

_ She snorts, smirking, "You have no idea Dings." With your free hand, you reach out and clutch the black coat beside you.  _

_ "can we go now? paps needs a new screen, his eyes keep glitching." You tell him. _

_ Papyrus mumbles beside you, "Sans Is Shivering, He Needs Better Clothes." You ignore him, you were fine. Sure you were shivering and your body was aching but that didn't matter. You all had to leave for somewhere safer, Alba could give you three a place to stay right? Somewhere safe where you could all recuperate and plan what next to do. And have something to eat. _

_ The moon is shrouded by the clouds, but you can see some stars through the gaps. It's a nice night out, but far too cold to sleep outside.  _

_ He smiles, it's still awkward and strained but it's more genuine than ever. "Ah right, let's go children. Alba, if you will?" He crouches down to take both you and your brother into his arms, you both protest, he ignores you both. "I think it's time we leave. It's... been a long few weeks for us." _

_ Alba hums then nods after a long moment, "This way." She says, turning on the spot and quietly walking away. "Tell me what happened to you on the way back Gaster, King Asgore sent out squads to look for you, he only stopped because of his advisors and even then. He never thought you were dead, guess he was right."  _

_ "It's a long story Alba..." You start to tune out the conversation as your brother snuggles into your side in Gaster's arms. It's a cold night tonight in Floatsa, and you're both tired. But you can't sleep, not with Papyrus so tired and sleepy. Even with Gaster there, you'd rather keep awake than fall asleep alongside him. You coax Papyrus to sleep, you'd sleep after he did, you promise. _

_ It's a quiet night tonight as you leave the coastal city of Floatsa, it's not completely silent as Gaster and Alba converse all the way into Alba's sleek and subtle glidecar, it's small and not enough for four people but you all make it work. You and Papyrus are still children after all. You let Papyrus sleep on Gaster's lap while you watching the surroundings drive by, semi-listening to the conversation between your maker and his old friend and the strange melody in the air. _

_ It sounds nice, the melody. _

_You wonder what_ it's called.

There's a song in your head, you don't know what it's called. You've never heard of it before. It takes a while for you to follow along the lyrics. You feel a bit tired and floaty but with each beat of the song and lyrical tune, you find yourself grounded back to reality. Had you drifted off again? What exactly had you been doing before? You can't really remember, but hey, you were listening to a damn good song. 

"this is good." You murmur to yourself, blinking as you begin to register more than just the song now. There's a pair of headphones on your head, big and heavy and loud. "oh that sounds cool, wha-" You yelp and jump in place as you feel a hand grab yours, the headphones fall off your head, now hanging off your neck as you find yourself staring face to face with a relieved looking Axe. "axe? what-"

Black was there too, and Mutt. 

Actually _everyone_ was there, including your brother. 

You were... On the couch?

"CHINE! YOU'RE BACK!" Crooks exclaimed from your other side, grabbing on your other hand. You fluster a bit, wondering what the hell was going on. "I'M SO GLAD!"

You give him a paired nervous smile and chuckle, "uh yeah? where'd exactly did i go? can't say i remember anything right now." You admit to him and Axe, they share a complicated look.

"So music is a comfort of his, good to know." Green murmured off to the side, standing with your brother who nodded at him. 

"TYPICALLY IF SOMETHING IS WRONG, MUSIC IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT CAN CALM MY BROTHER AND I THE MOST. HIM ESPECIALLY." He admits and you're surprised. Since when did he admit weaknesses like that? You feel a bit betrayed actually, music was indeed one of the things that could calm you and your brother down. 

Your betrayal is swept aside as you start to _remember_. " _oh fuck._ " Your eyelights dart around the room, "where's-" Alphys? And Undyne? Were they both okay? Holy _shit_ that had been more than a fucking mess! Like what the _fuck?_

"ALPHYS AND UNDYNE LEFT MORE THAN HALF AN HOUR AGO CHINE." Blue informs you, looking relieved and happy to see you awake. He'd been certainly worried when he read about the situation earlier on! 

"didn't wanna risk havin' her 'round in case you or your bro there end up going nutso again." Red bluntly said, he held his hands up at the looks he got from the others. "what? you know i'm right!"

"still should've said it with a bit more tact." Stretch drawled, draping an arm over Red's skull, chuckling when the smaller skeleton cursed at him and batted said arm away. "but yeah, essentially. alphys says sorry by the way."

"she shouldn't! that was-" Your brother interrupts, "ENTIRELY MY FAULT. I OVERREACTED AND MISTOOK HER AS SOMEONE ELSE." Yeah that. You can't help the snort that escapes you, you ignore your brother's looks as you nod. 

"it's not her fault that she looks... like _her_. she's just alphys. we're just, not used to seeing her face." You say awkwardly, feeling guilty- it _was_ you and your brother's fault for it to happen. 

"YOU'LL HAVE TO GET USED TO IT THEN." Noir commented, arms crossed and looking unimpressed, "IT WOULD GET TIRING TO MAKE SURE YOU TWO ARE KEPT AWAY FROM ALPHYS. EVEN AXE AND CROOKS CAN AT LEAST TOLERATE UNDYNE'S PRESENCE. BEING TRIGGERED BY A MERE FACE WOULD MAKE THINGS DIFFICULT IN THE LONG RUN, WILL YOU START LOSING YOURSELF ONCE MORE IF YOU EVEN SEE ALPHYS' PICTURE?" He asked Visor, ignoring the pointed looks he garnered from the others. 

You both cringe causing Noir to sigh. "WE'LL THINK OF SOMETHING." Bones said, reassuring both Noir and Visor who just looked down with his fists closed. You... sent him up to his room right? How had he fared up there all on his own? You hadn't followed after him, intending to stay behind, face everyone and _explain_ but you- you ended up... 

Fuck, just another problem to 'your' body huh? 

"We will," G agreed, "But that begs the question on what the hell happened back there. Mind if we ask what your Alphys' mom did to make you both hate her so much to the point of hating Alphys' face?" 

You want to answer it, but your find your mouth clamming shut and your body shuddering a bit. You look down to your lap, finally taking your hands back from both Crooks and Axe who give you a concerned look as you reach up to hold on to the headphones around your neck. The song's changed- oh you know this song. Huh who knew that some songs stayed the same across dimensions?

You don't have to look up to know that your brother did something similar, shutting up and not making a sound or effort to explain.

There's a wave of quiet sighs, "Chine, Visor," Crooks says, his giant, scarred hand landing on your head. Stars, his palm was almost as big as your skull. You don't look at him as he continues, "You Don't Have To Answer Now. Not Today, We Can Wait, However An Explanation Would Be Appreciated In The Future." You had to look at him after that, to give him your surprised look.

His smile, to anyone else would be fucking horrifying but to you? You find it gentle and reassuring. Your SOUL thumps just a bit faster in your chest as Crooks just smiles there like the saint he is and pats your head.

Axe is looking adorably proud over Crooks but he also looks understanding. He's tracing the cracks over his skull again, but thankfully staying away from the edge of his hole. "what my bro said. ya don't have to say everythin' or anythin' right now, today. but don't leave us hangin' forever." 

You stare at the both of them and look at the others. They seem to agree, though a few seemed disgruntled it- you realize then and there that it was kind of lucky that you and your brother ended up in _this_ type of Undertale. With _these_ types of AUs, they were understanding, they were patient, they didn't pry all that much- there'd been a chance of you both appearing somewhere else less kind or understanding. Where the ambiance of the mansion was completely different.

You wouldn't feel as relieved as you were right now if you'd been faced with distrustful faces, demanding answers and explanations. You were very sure you'd try and run away with your brother if that had happened.

Taking a deep breath, you give them a small thankful smile. "thanks." 

Your brother bowed his head, "Indeed, Thank You Everyone For This... I... _We_ Will Explain More One Day But The Least I Can Say For Now Is That Alba," His eyelights disappear and a dark scowl appears on his face, "Is A Dirty Little _Traitor_ To The Monster Race."

And technically the reason why Prosthesis Sans and Papyrus existed in the first place.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter will probably be a time-skip esque chapter  
> where a few days or so passed and the skeletons are settling a bit more in their new lives.  
> and after that?  
> welp. i DID promise another maintenance chapter.  
> sorry for the long wait you guys, life threw a curve ball but i hope i'm getting back on track with some things.


	17. Week of Peace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> time skip chapter!  
> the week as it goes, not all of it obviously but  
> there's a little something at the end for you to enjoy :)

* * *

"g'mornin' crooks." 

Crooks paused from his dicing, blinking as he looked back to see Chine lumbering into the kitchen. Looking half-asleep and tired but undeniably awake. "Good Morning Chine." He greeted back, surprised to see the skeleton up at the moment. It was rather early, the sun had just risen and his brother had yet to even wake up. As far as he knew it anyway, he hadn't come down to the kitchen yet.

So seeing Chine up was unexpected for Crooks, but perhaps that was just because he wasn't used to Chine waking up early yet. Who knows with the other's sleeping schedule. Crooks would just have to get used to it. "Would You Like Some Coffee?" He asked, setting down his knife for a bit.

Chine nodded, blearily yawning, "coffee would be great crooks." He mumbled, rubbing his closed sockets in an effort to stay awake. Crooks smiled slightly but silently wondered if Chine even slept last night. He wouldn't be surprised if he didn't, what with how problematic yesterday had been. 

The tall skeleton sighed as he took the coffee pitcher into hand, remembering yesterday.

The revelation that Chine's Alphys' mother was apparently a traitor to the monster race was... shocking to simply put. It caused a commotion among them, most of them were hesitant to believe that- an actual to stars damned _traitor?_ To _their race?_

It was near-unthinkable to consider, monsters from the start were a united species. Most of their universes couldn't even consider betraying their very race, not even from the more violent universes like Noir, Red, Black and Mutt's universes. Though they were more violent and were underneath a tyranny, at the very least they would be united in the end. Should they have freed themselves from the underground one way or another, they would have immediately put up a united front. 

In this universe, in Classic and Pyrus' universe, it was just so. Monsters stood together, helping each other out in the face of their freedom. Things had been rough at the start, but with that unity and more, they'd managed to get far. Managed to get to where they were now. 

So to think that a _monster_ would stray from their united front, to _betray them_ was ghastly to think of.

Surprisingly however, only Bones and Skull weren't as surprised as they were. Instead they had looked grim with a vague face of understanding. In their universe traitors weren't exactly unheard of, monsters or otherwise. It was then that they, along with Chine and Visor explained something.

Their universes had monsters free from the underground. They were never sealed in the first place and their population had flourished, they lived through life the same way humans did, they were free to do as they wished. Betrayal included. They never experienced the unified despair and hope of being sealed away after a horrible war that ground their populations into literal dust. They never spent years underground, with a limited area where they could live and repopulate and even then, the fertility of monsters were affected by said war. Children were not as cherished as they were in their universes and were not scarce.

Different universes, different circumstances.

It was a hard thing to swallow for all of them, the less violent pairs of brothers especially. 

When asked on what she'd done exactly, Chine merely shook his head and repeated what Crooks had said himself, essentially asking for time. Time they had already offered beforehand. It was more than a bit frustrating for some of them but they had offered it and would not rescind, they would let Chine and Visor settle into their lives and start their own for now and let it temporarily be left behind.

They would come back towards it in the future surely, but for now, they would let Chine and Visor be.

Lest more drama happen and someone ends up doing something they, or _everyone_ would regret. 

The rest of yesterday was spent in semi-awkwardness, but at the very least Chine and Visor now had phones and were now part of their group chat and now had all of their numbers in their respective phones. Alphys and Undyne had given the phones to Pyrus before they left.

Their identity however was still being processed so they wouldn't have their IDs for a while.

Things became relatively normal as the day continued, Chine and Visor had temporarily 'disappeared' from them to talk between themselves within Visor's room. Axe had been a bit worried about that for a brief while, especially when their talk spanned for about three hours before Chine finally left Visor's room looking somewhat perturbed. Of course he waved off Axe's worries and just said he and Visor had just been discussing a few things, they even remained civil for the entire three hours! _A miracle all on its own!_

Chine's exaggerated words, not his. 

At any rate, after that the brothers split as Visor stayed in his room and Chine retreated back towards their shared cottage.

Dinner was a small thankfully normal affair, separate this time. They couldn't dine together all the time after all, and Crooks was happy to cook dinner for the three of them. And they even enjoyed a bit of entertainment together, watching television for a few hours- mostly cooking shows as Crooks had been looking forward to them for the night. Then the night ended as they all went off to bed, just around 11 o'clock. 

And thus, 'Day Two' of Chine and Visor's stay passed...

And 'Day Three' began, with Chine happily drinking coffee and watching Crooks cook breakfast within their little cottage, eventually though he asked to help Crooks and though he was rebuffed a bit, Crooks eventually gave in and let him help.

"mornin' axe. _grate_ to see ya this morn'." Chine greeted with a grin as Axe finally entered the kitchen, holding a small piece of cheese to a grater.

Axe looked briefly surprised but then grinned back as Crooks let out a squawk, "Chine! How Could You?! I Let You Help Me With Breakfast!" He exclaimed, looking betrayed. Chine and Axe couldn't help but laugh at the sight of it. "Stop Laughing! It Is Too Early For Puns!" 

" _snrk-_ sorry paps." Axe chuckled, clearly not meaning it, "i'm sure chine didn't mean it, but it _was_ pretty _punny_ ya gotta admit it." Chine bowed his head and wheezed as Crooks let out a strangled noise.

"SAAAANS!!!"

Day Three was starting out great no matter what Crooks said.

* * *

Day Five in this new life, new universe, new body, you finally decide to try out more than a few skills as a Sans and as a skeleton.

You don't know whether or not it was too soon to actually do it, but you thought it'd be better to try and get used to it rather than having to do it later and not be able to actually do it.

It being able to take 'shortcuts'. Aka, teleporting. 

An ability that different Sans and Papyrus possessed, you're not too sure if _everyone_ knew how to teleport. Like the more energetic versions, you always thought they could but they couldn't exactly do it as casually as their lazier brothers could. 

In Prosthesis AU _both_ Sans and Papyrus could teleport, however obviously Sans had the upper hand. He had an easier time to do that and Papyrus could only rely on that in dire emergencies. Later on, maybe in a day or two, you and your brother would have to explore your skills together. 

I.e. you'd have to fight each other. 

Prosthesis Sans and Papyrus, almost every version of the brothers, were at least skillful in battle and though you don't like the thought of fighting so hard in the future you'd be an idiot to think that there wouldn't be a possibility for it. Whether or not that fight would be huge and long, it was better to be prepared rather than be tripped unexpectedly.

It wasn't like you and your brother hadn't fought before as humans, you both had taken defense classes and had a rough childhood.

_ Fist raised in the air, you try not to shake and tremble as your brother gives you a fearful but thankful and understanding look. Do it, doitdoitdoit-  
Do it or he'll have someone else hurt your brother. _

You both weren't the best, far from it but you could hold yourselves in a fight against others. Like the times you'd both been mugged or someone else wanted to pick a fight. And you'd even fought each other during the rare times you'd both felt like it. 

To your ire though, your brother was better at fighting physically compared to you. 

~~Or maybe that was just because you didn't want to hurt him anymore than you had to.~~

Either way, you and your brother would have to spar at some point in the near future. You wonder if you had Prosthesis Sans and Visor's fighting prowess and skills, you probably did, you had their other skills after all. You'd finally sorted out Sans' HolCog, gone through most of the files within it and... the contents were exactly what you expected and definitely regretted. 

You made sure to hide those files away again within the data of the HolCog. You would transfer them to one of the hickeys that you now have in your coat, but you still weren't sure on what were on _those_. You had yet to check them.

You certainly have a lot to do on your end, but you had time.

Right now, you wanted to figure out how to teleport.

You're sat on the floor of your room, your wide spacious room. Mutt had kept to his word and the bed that was now gone- he'd taken it away on day four during the afternoon.

The past two days wer nice and relaxing, also informational as you and your brother now had phones which could connect to the internet. You both could communicate with each other from afar again, the HolCogs you both had couldn't connect to the internet hear- it was incompatible with the signals and such. You have an idea for that but you'd explore and think more on it later on.

_ You _  
so theoretically if i just confirm my spatial coordinates, the distance of where i am and where i want to be  
and picture that location  
i should be able to shortcut 

_ dumbassbitch  
_ THEORETICALLY YES.  
AND SIMILARLY I SHOULD BE ABLE TO DO SO AS WELL.   
ONLY AT A SMALLER DISTANCE AND WITH A GREATER COST.  
I REGRET IMPLEMENTING THAT AS SUCH.

_ You _  
pfft hey you were the one to say that and go with it  
i said i didnt mind with papyrus being able to shortcut just like sans

_ dumbassbitch  
_ REALISTICALLY IT WOULDN'T HAVE MADE SENSE!   
PAPYRUS' SOUL WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO SUPPORT THAT LONG DISTANCE TELEPORTATION WITHOUT STRAINING HIS SOUL AND MAGIC TOGETHER!

 _ You  
_ ig  
'realistically'  
that term kinda gets stretched now huh  
i mean were fictional skeletons now in a fictional universe with other fictional skeletons  
how realistic is this

 _ dumbassbitch  
_ DO NOT FUCKING START WITH ME ON THAT BULLSHIT.  
ACTUALLY FOCUS AT THE TASK AT HAND BROTHER.

 _ You  
_ yeah yeah don't get your panties in a twist

_ dumbassbitch _  
JUST GO AND FUCKING TELEPORT YOU ASSHOLE!  


You snicker to yourself, clicking the phone off and pocketing it in the pocket of your hoodie. You still love the hell out of this new hoodie of yours, especially the fur hood. Shaking your head, you focus back at the matter at hand; closing your eye sockets and getting a feel of yourself.

Over the few days, you haven't done anything magically impressive. Other than healing your brother's SOUL a couple of times, he's decided that you'd only do that after every couple of days, it would lengthen over time when he felt more... well, _comfortable_ wouldn't be the word he would use but you were going to use it- when he felt more comfortable. Prosthesis Papyrus could usually last at least a week before Sans had to heal his SOUL. A week and a half if he felt ballsy or felt it was necessary.

The longest he'd gone was a month fully, which was impressive but really concerning. Any longer and he would have...

You shake your head again, "focus. _focus_." You hiss to yourself, taking in a deep breath. 

You could think more about the fucked up situations of Prosthesis AU later on, you had shit to do first.

So, supposing that the whole 'shortcut teleporting' business was all about spatial coordinates, distance and location imaging... You open your sockets, standing up and glancing over to the corner of the room, your mind instantly offering numbers you wouldn't even know about before if you'd been human and-

The

World

_Disappears_

_ Everything disappears around, underneath, above, you. From all sides, it's all gone. Inky blackness, a void so utterly empty- for a terrifying moment you're nowhere. Black turns blinding white, a space so entirely full- for a horrifying moment, you're everywhere. And just as quick as it was gone, the world comes back. But different.  _

_ You're no longer on the chair by the far wall of the room. _

_ You're on the table in the corner. _

_ "Test 13 complete, Subject 42-WDS has successfully displaced itself, magic levels stable-" You ignore the scientists, panting on the table-  _ heaving _and- "Though successful, Subject 42 shows signs of fatigue and has regurgitated its previous meal. Further testing required for resistance."_

You pant, a wide grin on your face despite your stomach swirling uncomfortably for a moment. "i did it." You lean against the wall, a laugh bubbling from your mouth. "i did it!" You exclaim, sliding down the wall. SOUL thumping excitedly in your chest as the uncomfortable feeling in your stomach vanishes like it wasn't even there in the first place. 

_ You  
_ you owe me a fucking cake bitch

_ dumbassbitch _  
DAMMIT

* * *

Day Six starts bright and early for you, as the sun climbs over the horizon you're standing casual in the kitchen, once again accompanied by Pyrus, Blue and Edge. It was the start of the morning and over the past few days you've been craving something. You hadn't realized what you were exactly craving until you remembered an important detail.

Ah, that's right. 

How on earth could you have forgotten? You stand, briefly excusing yourself from the conversation with the three of them to find a certain something from one of the cupboards. You hadn't noticed it until now, you probably should have noticed during the second day when you made pancakes for everyone. You ignore the curious looks you get from the three skeletons behind you as you take a bottle of blueberry syrup from its place in the cupboards.

You smile a serene smile at their strangled noises when you start pouring some blueberry syrup into your coffee, you can't resist the urge to tip back your skull and pour some into your mouth. You may or may not be amused by the noises behind you as you set down the bottle of blueberry syrup and tuck it back from where you found it. Stirring your bow syrup added coffee, you return to your place at the tablet very much aware to the wide-eyed looks you were getting from the three before you.

"You..." Pyrus couldn't continue. They all looked speechless as you took a sip of your coffee- that's much better. 

You know, you did enjoy blueberry syrup before but this felt and seemed to taste completely different. 

And you just thought that you made incredibly good pancakes topped with good blueberry syrup on the second day. 

"I Like The Brand Of Blueberry Syrup You Have." You inform to the speechless skeletons, Noir looks at you aghast and somewhat offended for some reason.

Blue looks at you, at your cup of coffee, at the closed cupboard where the blueberry syrup was, then back at you and finally looks down to his own cup of coffee. "It's Too Early To Think More On This." He whispers, downing the scalding liquid in one go.

Before, you'd probably be on the same page as them. But now, you were in Prosthesis Papyrus' body and he has his own cravings- he liked blueberry syrup, usually he likes to mix things with it but he also likes downing it down all on its own. 

Prosthesis Sans on the other hand-

"oi." 

Speak of the devil and he shall come- somewhat. 

" _STARS ABOVE!_ " Pyrus yelps, surprised at the sudden appearance of your brother in the kitchen. He wasn't the only one, you were unfortunately included. You scowl at him- he's really gotten down to taking shortcuts huh? Smug bastard. You almost spilled your blueberry syrup coffee! 

Your brother gives Pyrus and the others a sheepish look, "whoops, sorry guys, didn't mean to spook y'all." He apologized, he turns to you and grunts. "you still owe me a cake by the way. neapolitan. _four layers._ " he tells you as he wanders over to the cupboards and starts rummaging through them, no doubt looking for his intended condiment. He seems tired, clothing disheveled and there were bags underneath his sockets- has he been sleeping at all? He better not have been teleporting all over his room or something over the night!

"JUMP UP YOUR UGLY ASS AND DIE, YOU LOOK HORRENDOUS, HAVE YOU EVEN SLEPT OR BATHE LATELY?" You sneer at him, huffing as you grumpily drink more of your coffee. Neapolitan flavoring for _four layers_? Fucking gluttonous piece of shit- does he know how long that would take? Of course he does. He could have at least just stuck to three to go with the neapolitan flavors! 

Still, he needs to go the fuck to sleep! And keep up proper hygiene! 

Hesitantly, Pyrus speaks up, looking utterly lost and confused. "Erm- Chine? Visor? What Is-" "got it!" Your brother exclaims, victorious as he clutches out a bottle of strawberry syrup. He looks happy, his cravings must have been as bad as yours then, if not more since Prosthesis Sans indulges in drinking syrup more than Papyrus.

"ah, sorry pyrus. but mind if i take this? been cravin' it really bad. kay thanks bye." Your brother hums and disappears in place.

If you had sockets you know they'd twitch, "DISGRACEFUL- HE DIDN'T EVEN WAIT FOR YOUR INPUT!" You exclaim, appalled. He must really be out of it the dumb bastard. You stand from your seat, "I'LL BE RIGHT BACK, I HAVE TO DEAL WITH HIM." 

"NO NO! IT'S QUITE ALRIGHT!" Pyrus reassures you, trying to get you to sit back down, "HE SEEMED QUITE TIRED AFTER ALL, IT'S FINE VISOR."

Noir had his palms pressed together, fingers right between his closed sockets- almost like he was praying, though all he did was inhale deeply. "YOU _BOTH_ DRINK CONDIMENTS." He deadpans at you, socket twitching. " _WHY?_ "

"I'M ACTUALLY SURPRISED THAT CHINE WOULD DRINK STRAWBERRY SYRUP, I THOUGHT HE WOULD JOIN CLASSIC'S WEIRD KETCHUP GROUP." Blue mentioned with a scrunched up face.

You can't help but scrunch your face yourself, "NO. MY BROTHER LIKES STRAWBERRY SYRUP, AND I PREFER BLUEBERRY SYRUP. IT'S RATHER STRANGE YES BUT IT'S JUST OUR PREFERENCES." That and...

_ "What would you like boys?" He asks quietly, nudging you both to pay attention. You're hunched over yourself, practically hiding underneath the oversized rag of a hat on your skull and the menu itself. Your vision is a bit glitchy, but you're still able to read the menu before you. "Choose something from the breakfast portion, that's the only thing we can afford right now." _

_ The other foods look nice, and the smell of the diner is certainly better- your stomach growls and you focus back on the menu. "I- Pancakes? What's that?" You ask as your brother leans over to read with you. _

_ "i don't know. but it seems cheap. lets get that." Your brother suggests, eyeing the picture of the circular food thing in the menu.  _

_ Gaster smiles slightly, he looks a bit sad- you don't know if that's better than the strained, thoughtful looks he keeps giving you and your brother. "Alright. Looks like they only have strawberry and blueberry syrup, it goes with the pancakes. Which one do you boys want?"  _

_ Your brother frowns, tugging at the ratty hood over his head nervously, "um... i- i don't know... paps?" _

_ You shake your head, you don't know either. You don't know what a strawberry or blueberry syrup is. Just like pancakes.  _

_ Gaster's smile disappears and you fidget, feeling ashamed and sad. "Ah, that's alright. I know, why don't we get both? You can choose which one you like better after you taste both." He waves the waitress over, placing the order as you and your brother huddle together by his side. Your brother's busy with reading the rest of the menu, he won't order anything else of course, they don't have any money for any of the other food at the moment. He just wants to read something.  _

_ You look outside the window, watching the grey sky. You like the sky, and the ground. You like the outside. Even if it's noisy, and dangerous, and you, your brother and Gaster have to keep moving most days, and you're all hungry but can't really stop to eat anything significant until now, and your vision blacks out sometimes because your visor's broken and it has to be fixed with parts that are hard to get. You still like the outside.  _

_ The pancakes come in just a few minutes, three plates of two discs of something stacked on each other as well as two small pitchers of blue and red liquid. "these are pancakes?" Your brother mumbles, poking at his plate of pancakes. "it's- kinda soft." It is? You poke your plate.  _

_ It is.  _

_ "Stop poking your food," Gaster scolds, you both stop but eye the soft discs. "Now, this here is blueberry syrup," He motions to the blue pitcher, "And this is strawberry syrup." The red one. "Pick which one you would like to taste first." _

_ You hesitate, your brother nudges you- you get to pick first. You point at the blue pitcher, your brother then points at the red one. _

_ Gaster nods, smiling again. He should smile more, it's better than his thoughtful looks and rough frowning mumbles. "Alright. There we go." He pours both pitchers on the discs and... You eat. _

_ It's sweet. _

_ Soft, and kinda sticky. _

_ Very sweet. _

_ You like it. _

_ You like blueberry syrup. _

_ You try strawberry- it's different, still sweet but. You think you like blueberry more. _

Blueberry syrup pancakes were one of the first real foods that Papyrus had ever eaten. And it certainly left an impact on him, and strawberry syrup pancakes was it for Sans.

You take in a deep breath, drinking the rest of your blueberry syrup coffee.

You're not surprised that you really like blueberry syrup now.

* * *

_ GRAVEYARD CHAT (1:34 PM)  
_ _ pupper, BlueStars, redhead, streeeetch, Librarian, CoolDude!!, EdgeBoss, hopstepjump, zzZZZzz, bullseye, chacharealsmooth, chachanotsmooth, sunnysmiles, axeuaquestion, BringingSexyBack, HisMajesty, WINdowbed, VisionFullFold _

_chacharealsmooth  
_ IT'S OFFICIALLY BEEN SEVEN DAYS SINCE YOU'VE BOTH BEEN HERE!  
HOW ARE YOU FEELING?  
ARE YOU BOTH SETTLING OKAY?

_WINdowbed_  
a full on week huh  
seems kinda strange to think of but eh ive been doing good

_VisionFullFold_  
IT IS SOMEWHAT STRANGE TO THINK THAT WE'VE BEEN DISPLACED IN AN ENTIRELY ALTERNATE WORLD FOR SEVEN DAYS STRAIGHT.  
HOWEVER YES, WE HAVE BEEN SETTLING FINE AS FAR AS I AM AWARE.

_Librarian_  
If anything happens don't be afraid to let us know.  
It would be better if anything significant or important happened, everyone should know just in case.

_ bullseye _  
definitely  
don't want shit to happen and get out of hand

_ BlueStars _  
LANGUAGE! BUT YES!   
IT WOULD BE BETTER IF WE COULD LEARN OF IMPORTANT DETAILS THAT HAPPEN, OF COURSE YOU'RE STILL ENTITLED TO KEEP YOUR OWN SECRETS BUT IF IT'S ANYTHING PERTAINING THE WHOLE HOUSEHOLD AND SKELETON GROUP THEN REALLY WE ALL SHOULD KNOW!

_ redhead _  
like bein' triggered by certain people for example

_ WINdowbed _  
we didnt know aight lay off

_ sunnysmile _  
:(

_ axeuaquestion _  
red

_ redhead _  
aight aight i'm sorry!!  
just stop frownin crooks please

_ CoolDude!! _  
RED >:(

_ redhead _  
i said i was sorry!!!  
@EdgeBoss help me out here bro i said i was sorry

_ EdgeBoss _  
AS ENTERTAINING AS IT IS TO SEE HIM SQUIRM, HE DID SAY HIS APOLOGIES.

zzZZZzz  
heh

_ redhead _  
stfu

_ BringingSexyBack _  
So Visor, Chine.  
Got any clue on what you want to do?   
Your IDs are just about done, they should come by either tomorrow or the next day.

_ hopstepjump _  
it took longer than we thought it would  
paperwork kept being pushed back for a bit  
its hard to bring up new fam into the scene when the governments keeping an eye on us already

_ streeeetch _  
yeah   
we should actually be a little grateful it was just you two that came through the machine  
were already thinning the line here 

_ HisMajesty _  
WE'VE BEEN THINNING THE LINE FROM THE VERY START WHEN SKELETONS STARTED TO BECOME MORE OF A COMMODITY THEN A RARITY.  
AT ANY RATE, SET YOUR MAJOR TESTING DATES FOR SOMETHING EVEN LONGER JUST IN CASE ANOTHER PAIR OF BROTHERS COME THROUGH.  
WE CAN'T HANDLE HAVING ANOTHER SET COMING JUST AFTER CHINE AND VISOR, NOT IN TERMS OF PROVIDING THEM AN IDENTITY IN THIS UNIVERSE.

_ pupper _  
yeah we know bro  
guess this'll be another setback for a long ass whole 

_ WINdowbed _  
have no idea on what i should do yet aside from work on that machine with you guys 

_ VisionFullFold _  
I HAVE A FEW IDEAS HOWEVER I HAVE TO THINK THEM OVER.   
SPEAKING OF THE MACHINE, WHEN WILL WE BE ABLE TO WORK ON IT?

_ Librarian _  
In a couple of days perhaps.  
We've mostly been focused on other things, which include you two obviously.

_ chachanotsmooth _  
YOU STILL HAVE TIME TO THINK ON WHAT YOU WANT TO DO! SO PLEASE, TAKE YOU TIME!  
BUT DON'T TAKE TOO LONG!

_ cottagemates (2:45 PM)  
chefskiss!, ahole, backboneboy _

_ chefskiss!  
_ CHINE ARE YOU ALRIGHT?

 _ backboneboy  
_ yeah  
why?

_ ahole _  
you look antsy  
barely sittin still lately  
have you been sleeping?

_ backboneboy  
_ ehhh  
couple of hours at most  
just feeling a bit pent up dw bout it

 _ ahole  
_ are you sure?

 _ chefskiss!  
_ WOULD YOU LIKE ANYTHING?   
PYRUS TOLD ME ABOUT YOUR LIKING TOWARDS STRAWBERRY SYRUP, WE CURRENTLY DON'T HAVE ANY SO I APOLOGIZE. I'LL KEEP THAT IN MIND NEXT GROCERY TRIP, BUT I CAN BREW SOME HOT CHOCOLATE IF YOU'D LIKE.

 _ backboneboy  
_ aw thx crooks you're the best

 _ ahole  
_ ikr

 _ backboneboy  
_ i swear im good you two  
just pent up   
i'll deal with it

 _ chefskiss!  
_ IF YOU'RE SURE CHINE. BUT REMEMBER! MY BROTHER AND I ARE HERE TO HELP SHOULD YOU EVER NEED IT!

 _ ahole  
_ yeah what my bro said

 _ backboneboy  
_ thanks you two and crooks, you're just flat out the best

 _ chefskiss!  
_ NO NEED FOR THANKS CHINE, WE ARE GOOD FRIENDS AFTER ALL :)

 _ backboneboy  
_ axe i'm so jealous of you   
any chance we can exchange bros?

 _ ahole  
_ tempting but nah 

_ BASTARDSHITHEAD (2:59 PM) _

_ BASTARDSHITHEAD  
_ so uh yeah  
we're really doing this

 _ You  
_ SIGH...  
INDEED WE ARE.

 _ BASTARDSHITHEAD  
_ i mean we could always reschedule for like maybe next week or smth

 _ You  
_ JUST EARLIER YOU WERE COMPLAINING ON HOW YOUR BACK FELT STRANGE AND UNCOMFORTABLE. YOU WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO LAST A WEEK, YOU'RE NOT USED TO THAT BACK AND WE NEED TO SEE TO IT SOONER OR LATER.  
BEST WE DO IT SOONER RATHER THAN LATER.

 _ BASTARDSHITHEAD  
_ i really hate that that makes sense and that i'm the one who fucking made us do this in the first place

 _ You  
_ FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES, YOU NEVER EXPECTED TO END UP IN THE SCENARIO YOU PREVIOUSLY MADE.  
THE SPINAL MAINTENANCE SUPPOSED TO BE A FICTIONAL PROCEDURE. EVERYTHING WAS SUPPOSED TO BE OF FICTION.  
AND YET HERE WE ARE.

 _ BASTARDSHITHEAD  
_ here we are  
fuck alright let's get this done  
...  
please be careful bro don't fuck this up

_ You _  
I WON'T.

* * *

"I Borrowed Mutt's Headphones Again And I've Asked For This Table From Stretch." Your brother says as you sit, tense on the edge of the soft bed. You can't look away from the fold-up table that was temporarily taking residence in your brother's room. You're completely still as your brother ties your arms together, they're folded underneath your naked chest and skillfully tied together using hard rope that was in one of your pockets of your coat. You wouldn't be able to easily break through it on your own. 

You're shirtless, that alone is causing to feel extremely uncomfortable but you ignore it in favor of just. Staring at the table. Reassuring yourself that your brother knew what he was doing and that everything was going to be fine. "Arms Are Done, Lift Your Legs Brother." You stiffly lift your legs, letting your brother begin to tie them together with another coil of rope that probably came from his pockets his jacket or pouches. 

This was a lot, tying yourself up like this.

But if you didn't, you'd probably end up destroying a lot of things whether you wanted to or not. 

It wasn't so much a Prosthesis Sans thing, sort of. He was used to it, sometimes he'll break down or panic but he was _used to it_.

You on the other hand?

This would be the first time you've _ever_ done this. Ever experienced it. 

And you would either flail in your panic or go limp. 

You didn't want to risk flailing and hurting your brother in the process. Even if your brother was going to keep you in place with the whole, turn your SOUL blue thing, your limbs could very well smack his face and everything else. Thus the rope and limb tying.

Your brother went with it mostly so you wouldn't hurt yourself but, you'd like to think this was for him.

Because he was much more of an important goal for you to focus on. 

"Done." Your breaths are steady as you gingerly test out the knots and rope. You tug at them. It's tight. Really tight, not tight enough to chafe or hurt, not right now but it's tight and secure enough that you won't be risking anything from your legs and arms. Your brother lifts you from the bed, carrying you bridal style. You'd be mortified and indignant if it weren't for the ever-growing sensation of dread overcoming your senses.

He sets you the fold-up table. You take in slight comfort at his steady hands, almost wishing he wasn't wearing his gloves but you instead look into digital eyes that look straight into your eyelights. Steady. Comforting. Gentle.

No one was around, it was just you and your brother.

You trusted your brother, he could do this, it was just the both of you. 

"Ready?" He asks, one hand settling in the middle of your ribcage. Your fucked up, partly metal ribcage. 

You finally speak, rasping out a quiet, shaky, "no."

**_Ping._ **

Your SOUL is blue now. Your brother's magic encompassing your very being, the culmination of your self- the dread lightens a bit, but you can't help the tears building in your socket as it's _still there_. 

It grows again when your brother sets the headphones on your skull, "Close Your Eyes Brother." Your brother whispers to you as music starts to blare and deafen your hearing. You whimper but close your eyes as you can feel his hands now around your neck, fingers brushing against the edge where bone turns into metal. 

_Close your eyes, keep them close, you'll be fine, you'll be fine it's okay it's your brother trust-_

**_CRACK_ **

_-him._

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's _time_  
>  you've all been waiting for it  
> next chapter?  
>  _spinal maintenance_
> 
> EDIT 12/2/20: there is now a drawing made by me about the diner scene! you can find it on either my [tumblr](https://vindictiveskeletons.tumblr.com/post/636363637372682240/its-the-diner-scene-baby-sans-and-papyrus-eating) or just find it at the [Prosthesis Collection](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26682478/chapters/68140639)  
> so if you want to see mini prosthesis sans and papyrus along with a glimpse of gaster, go to either to see it!


	18. Spinal Maintenance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its _**h e r e**_  
>  enjoy it all

* * *

"Stretch I Would Like To Ask You Something." 

Stretch gives Visor a look from where he's sitting. "yeah? what is it pal?" He asked from his place on the chair, his legs up on the table. Currently, he was out in the porch, enjoying a smoke while watching a random video on his phone. Something something, comedian making a police joke during a party and the police actually being there.

Visor's off at the side, looking... calm? Calm was a word he'd describe him, his face was set smooth, too smooth even. And he wasn't at the usual volume for his own voice so that was something. Before he could even try to ask what was wrong or happening, Visor answered his question. "Do You Have Or At Least Know Where A Spare Table Is? Something Not Too Big But Not Too Small?" He asks, looking straight at Stretch with those cool digital eyes of his.

Huh.

Weird question but, "would a fold-up table work? pretty sure we have a few of those in the basement." He answers, taking his legs off of the table so he could properly face his alternate. 

The screen-wearing skeleton makes a thoughtful face, "That Depends On How Tall And Wide They Are. Do You Mind Showing Them To Me?" 

Stretch frowned before shrugging, "sure why not." It's not like he was doing anything important anyway, he was just smoking alone watching videos on his phone. He smushed his cigarette on his ashtray, breathing out the rest of his smoke. Blue wouldn't like it if he smelled smoke inside the mansion. He, G, Bones and Skull weren't allowed to smoke inside the mansion, it was always outside.

And yes, it was somewhat surprising that Bones was a smoker. He wasn't much of it, he only smoked occasionally though and was gradually quitting it anyway. Tango didn't like the smell of smoke.

"come on." He motioned Visor to follow him towards the basement, "we got a few of 'em for the occasional outdoor bbq or whatever. which we'll probably do soon, won't be able to do those soon enough. 's gettin' colder out there, dunno when the snow's finally come down. either that or just do a warm get together. whatever my bro and the others plan with our friends." Which meant Alphys and Undyne coming over. They still needed to think of something for that. "say, anyone else we have to know that'll set off you an' your bro?" 

He immediately wants to take back the question, geez, where was _his_ tact? He shouldn't have asked flat out like tha-

"NO." Visor answered shortly afterwards, "I DON'T BELIEVE THERE IS ANYONE ELSE YOU CAN BRING THAT'LL SET US OFF. As Far As I Know Anyway. BUT WHO KNOWS, IT WILL DEPEND ON WHO YOU KNOW ACTUALLY. YOU SHOULD INFORM MY BROTHER AND I WHO WILL BE COMING JUST IN CASE IN THE FUTURE. AND I BELIEVE I HAVE A SOLUTION ON WHAT TO DO FOR ALPHYS SO THAT SHE CAN FREELY COME OVER WITHOUT ANY CAUTION TOWARDS MY REACTION." 

He had to blink a bit at the response before nodding, "a'ight. sounds good. i'll tell the others that." He opened the door to the basement, the light flickering on automatically as he and Visor stepped down the stairs. He lead Visor towards the area where they kept the extra fold-up furniture and a few other things. It was well past the machine, Stretch sees Visor pause to look at it before shaking his head and continuing to follow him towards the tables.

He helps unfold each table, letting Visor size them up, judge between them and think on his decision to choose whichever table he needed for whatever. Stretch doesn't ask why he needs the fold-up table, why he needs a specific one, he doesn't even ask when Visor starts sitting on one of the tables, going as far as to lie down on it. He almost snorts, almost, instead he just watches with amusement as Visor sits up.

The amusement drops at the silent, somber look on Visor's face. "This One." The other says, getting off the fold-up table. "I Will Borrow This One." 

Stretch wants to ask now, wants to prod about that look on Visor's face- but he remembers his brother's firm warnings and pleads. Don't bother them, don't ask personal questions, not yet. They needed space, they needed some time to settle and stabilize. "a'ight." He pushed against the wall he'd been leaning on to help Visor fold up and put away the rest of the tables, Visor taking the one he chose up the stairs. 

"I'LL RETURN THIS LATER." Visor tells him once they were both out of the basement. "THANK YOU STRETCH." 

Stretch shook his head, "s'no problem. glad to be of help pal." The smile he gets is nice. Actually, it's the first smile he's seen on Visor's face at all today. Had Visor smiled at any other time today? Or had he seemed down the whole day? He couldn't remember, he fidgets in place, opening his mouth to ask-

"STRETCH," His jaw shuts as Visor looks at him, "DO YOU KNOW WHERE MUTT IS?" 

Blinking, he took in a deep breath and nodded, motioning upwards, "yeah. should be up in the library with green." 

Visor gives him another smile, "THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN STRETCH. I'LL SEE YOU LATER." With that, he leaves. Carrying the fold-up table with him upstairs to do whatever it is he was planning to do.

Stretch watches him go, he sighs, scratches the back of his skull. "well... now what?" He asked himself, trying to think of what to do now that he was alone again.

Go back on the porch, smoke a new cig and continue watching random crap on his phone?

Nodding, "yeah that sounds good." 

He goes back to the porch, puts his feet on the table and reaches for his cigarettes and phone.

* * *

The day starts out deceptively calm. At least for you.

To anyone else within both the mansion and cottage, it _would_ be a calm day. Nothing out of the ordinary, just a simple, normal day.

You on the other hand were on the metaphorical edge of your seat the moment you woke up in the morning, already feeling like shit for something you've yet to do. You try not to let it show throughout the day, not when you asked Mutt for his headphones again nor for Stretch for a fold up table that they thankfully had. You had asked Stretch first for the table actually, then searched for Mutt second who was in the library with Green. "I'LL RETURN THESE LATER ON." You told them both as you carefully map out what else you needed within your head- you didn't really need anything else from the skeletons. You pretty much had everything in your pockets and pouches. 

You don't see or hear from your brother all morning, but you know that he's even more on edge than you. He was practically hanging off by a string on the non-existent edge, he'd be trying to distract himself. Or at least comfort himself with music.

One of the many upsides to having a new phone; you've both scoured the internet, trying to find the similarities and differences between universes. There was joy, surprise and awe when you found something familiar, music, games, comics, stories- and so much more that were somehow in this universe. Disappointment and sadness when you find out that some movies, games and such didn't exist in this universe. Intrigue and curiosity to the new things you've never heard about but were popular here for various reasons.

You've watched only a few movies that featured Metaton and though his character was so flamboyant and out there, you can definitely see how he got so popular. His acting and music skills weren't exaggerated at all from the game, you'd watch more of his stuff in the near future. 

Your brother's listened to various songs by Metaton and Napstablook, Naptsablook was already one of his favorite characters from the game, finding out that the ghost was popular musician made him very happy. 

You just know that his phone probably had all of the ghost's music, as well as various others. He's lost his original music library thanks to the whole 'unknown-accidental-body-snatching' but thankfully, he'd be able to build it right back up again. And even better, he found _Prosthesis Sans'_ music library in his HolCog. Which was great! There were a lot of songs in there, again with tons that you both have never actually heard of but all the better for your brother. 

It would definitely help him during the whole maintenance procedure. 

It happens in the middle of afternoon. Just a couple of hours after their respective lunches, you haven't eaten much. Scared that you'd throw up once during the procedure, something you really _don't_ want to happen. You hope your brother doesn't either, but it couldn't be helped either way. You have to do this.

You _have_ to do this.

Procrastinating on it would detriment your brother extremely, he was already complaining on the strain his spine was giving him- it admittedly wasn't much but it would only grow as time would pass. It was better to do it sooner than later, and there would be less risk if they got right to it, for the both of you. Your brother would be fine, you too, you'd both be fine.

You just had to do this carefully, properly.

You were ready.

~~Were you really?~~

_BASTARDSHITHEAD_  
i'm here

Pocketing your phone, you open your door. Your brother stands there, small and hunched over himself. Thankfully, there's no one in the hallway. He must have used a shortcut to just teleport to the hall. You don't ask why he didn't teleport into your room directly. You just step aside, let him inch his way into your room and close the door behind you. You could do this. You could definitely do this.

You've already set up the fold up table, it stood beside your bed at a good distance away, near the desk filled with the needed tools. Your brother sits on your bed, hesitating before taking off his hoodie and then his scarf. His hands are shaky, you don't comment on it nor when the shaking increases as he finally tugs off his shirt. You just prepare the rope, the restraints. Your brother folds his arms in front of his chest as planned, he doesn't say anything, neither do you as you start tying his hands together.

You make sure it doesn't chafe, but it's tight enough that your brother won't be able to break out of it easily or even at all. He's so tense, so strung up that you think he would snap the moment you touched him. "I Borrowed Mutt's Headphones Again And I've Asked For This Table From Stretch." You tell him, because he should know. The headphones will comfort him and you answer his unasked question of where the table came from. 

You tug on the ropes. 

Tight.

"Arms Are Done, Lift Your Legs Brother." You tell him and you watch as he stiffly lifts his legs for you to tie together. Same verse as the first, you tie them together. Not enough to chafe but tight enough that your brother's legs will be kept together no matter what. Your brother is sitting oh so still on the bed, not daring to move an inch of his own volition.

It disturbs you, but you can't think of doing anything else right now. Not even to comfort him. 

You want to, but you know your brother. If you try to comfort him now, he'll just snap out of the calm reverie he forced himself under and scream profanities at you. He won't stop until he cries. Not until he passes out from emotion. And as much as that seems like a good idea, to let your brother pass out completely, to not be conscious throughout the procedure- you know better than that.

And so does he.

So you don't comfort him right now, when he's so unnaturally calm and still. 

"Done." 

Your brother's breath is steady as he experimentally tugs at the ropes himself, finding them satisfactory going by his silence. Secure and safely restrained, you move to pick him up. Bridal style. Half-heartedly, you hoped he would snark at you. Be mortified by your choice of picking him up that way. Insult you. Anything.

He doesn't do anything but let himself be picked up that way, limbs stiff and frozen. 

You set him down on the table, letting him sit up and look at you. He looks pitiful your brother. His eyelights are shaking in his sockets, magic-made moisture already starting to gather. Pleading.

It's your turn to be calm. To be steady. You give him one look with your digital eyes, give him the one act of comfort he's silently asking from you. You can do this. You can _both_ do this.

Your brother trusted you to do this. It was just the both of you here.

"Ready?" You ask, one hand settling in the middle of his ribcage. His mostly metal, fucked up ribcafe.

Your poor brother finally speak, rasping out a quiet, shaky, "no." 

**_Ping._ **

His SOUL establishes, coated in your magic's blue glow. You have him, his entirety in your hands, enveloped his very SOUL in what he thinks is a firm, safe grip. You have him, he trusts you, he knows you, he trusts you, _loves you_ -

And he's crying.

Your strong, older brother is crying and so _very_ vulnerable right now. 

_ Your brother is the strongest brother out there, you're sure about that. He's protected you through your life, he's not very successful sometimes and a lot of those times he's the one that has to hurt you. But you know your brother, you trust him. You love him. He's your big brother and he's always there for you. No matter what. _

You want to stop, you don't want to do this anymore.

You continue.

"Close Your Eyes Brother." You tell him quietly, his whimper is damning as you wrap your hands around his neck, feeling the edge where bone meets metal. Dread is bubbling in your stomach but you can't focus on that, you have to focus on _him_. 

You can do this. You have to do this, _you have to-_

**_CRACK_ **

_do this._

It's sudden and sickening, but you've done the first step. 

Your brother's head is in your hands, his currently headless body trembles without it. 

You're trembling too as you stare down at his skull. 

_Oh stars._

If you still had a physical heart in your chest, it'd be pounding in your skull. 

No, it _was_. You can hear it in your skull- _Your brother's SOUL flickers white and blue as your grip loosens._

You can't do this, _you can't do this._ This was _insane_ , the sound of the metal twisting and unlocking was too unrealistically like an actual _bone breaking_. You just _**beheaded your brother**_. You can't proceed, you're shaking. You're scared, you can't possibly do this. You're going _to mess up, you're going to **fail**. You can't do this. you need-_

A terrified gasp breaks you out of your chaotic and swirling thoughts, you immediately freeze up and you _remember_.

The pounding stops.

Your brother's crying in your palms, translucent blue tears starts running down his face, his sockets now wide open, his eyelights blue pinpricks of fear and unstable. They're malformed and keep disappearing and reappearing in your brother's sockets, flashing like a random nonsensical morse code of panic and terror. " _oh fuck oh fuck oh shit_ -" Your brother whispers in quiet, rapid breathes. " _oh stars bro- don't. don't leave me like this. please **please** don't leave me like this, help me i can't- i can't feel- no i _can _but i can't- my head my head **my body my head bro no please put me back fix me i can't let anyone- someone's going to- i need- i need- i-**_ " He's gasping for air he thinks he desperately needs.

He's too panicked to even listen to the music blaring from the headphones.

What were you thinking? What were you _doing?_

You can't leave him like this. You _promised_ him, you _promised_ him that you could do this. 

Your big brother is breaking apart right in front you, he hasn't done that yet in this universe and you were just about to stop everything?

_ Your brother is the most fragile brother out there, you're sure about that. He's protected you through your life at the cost of himself, he's not very successful sometimes and a lot of those times he's the one that has to hurt you. But you know your brother, you trust him. You love him. He's your big brother and you're always there for him. No matter what. _

" _Shhhhh_ , Brother, Shhh. It's Okay. It's Okay. You're Doing Okay. Just Listen To Your Music, Listen To Your Songs Brother. Drift Off And Let Me Handle Everything. It's Just The Both Of Us Here Brother, No One Else. Just Your Little Brother Here. No One Else." You soothe him, cradling his head gently and try to steady his thoughts enough to _listen_. He just has to listen, to you, to his music. Nothing else. He doesn't have to do anything else. You were going to do all the work. He could just listen and try his best to relax.

No one else was there, it was just the two of them.

His brother didn't have to be strong right now. He didn't have to posture, pretend. He could be fragile all he wanted, be soft and sad, cry even- it was just your big brother and you right now. 

" _ **but what if he comes- brother i can't- i need to pro-**_ "

"It's Been Years Brother. You Got Us Out Remember? You Became Strong And Independent, I Have Too. I Can Protect Myself _And_ You Now."

" _ **i-i did?** y-you are? i... i can't feel my-_"

"Don't Think About It Brother. You'll Be Fine. Just _Trust_ Me. You Trust Me Right?"

" _i... oh- yeah. yeah. always bro._ "

He's no longer gasping or panicking- outwardly at least. His breath is heavy and shaky, he's still crying but you just gently set him down on a pillow. "Listen To Your Music Brother And Drift. I Promise, You'll Feel Better In Time. I Won't Leave You Like This. I Have You." You have him, you have him in your hands and magic.

His SOUL is a solid blue, no longer flickering. His headless body is sitting still on the table. Jittery and shaking slightly but it's sitting so still. 

Your brother sucks in a deep breath, he almost chokes on it but exhales shakily. "you have me." He says quietly, tears still streaming steadily down his face and his eyelights are a bit more stable. No longer flashing. "you have me, you won't leave me like this?" He asks in a tiny voice, you almost miss it but you don't. You nod. You have him. You won't leave him like this, you would _never_ leave him like this. This was- you could do this.

For him.

Always for him.

"I Won't Leave You Like This Brother. Now Drift And Listen To Your Music. Do Not Fall Asleep." He never could fall asleep like this, separated from his body. Never could, never will. 

You turn, ready to face his headless body- "wait!" You immediately turn back. He needed something, what did he need? "m-my... my scarf. please- i w-want- want it to b-be around m-my- a-around _me_." Your brother pleads from his pillow. His eyelights are gone and there's nothing but tears in his sockets now. You get his scarf and tenderly, carefully, wrap it around his short neck. Tucking him in the folds of his black scarf and letting the fabric soak up his tears. You try to make it as comfortable for him.

Maybe you should buy him a super soft pillow after this. 

You should do that, get him something nice. 

"th-thanks... mh..." He sniffs and quiets, finally closing his sockets and seemingly focusing on the music. Just to be sure, you make sure the headphones are at max volume- they hadn't been before. Which explains why he could hear you and why the music didn't seem to work as much. You need to check that from now on. You even look for his phone and make sure that was at max volume as well.

Your brother should be lost in the world of music and buried in the safety of his own mind.

You on the other hand, need to focus at the task at hand;

Your brother's headless body sits on the fold up table. Still tied up and shaking ever so lightly. 

You inhale and exhale as calmly as you can- which is extremely calm surprisingly.

Though it shouldn't be surprising. Right now, you were focusing on your brother. Not on yourself. Your brother needed you to be calm, so calm you will be. 

You were tranquil, professional. You were going to go through the procedure as swift but as careful as possible. You, yourself knew what to do. Your brother had, now definitely regretfully, put this maintenance down in steps and detail. You had read through it time and time again, once you felt amusement at how articulate and descriptive it had been. Now, underneath the calm, you only feel nervousness and a slight sense of dread.

On the desk, all the tools were already laid out. 

You take one, it's the welding gun, the one you found days earlier. On the first night in this universe, in this body. It was a modified and steampunk looking welding gun, the nozzle is thinly small, so small it was more like a needle than a nozzle but it's precision was greatly useful and needed. You check the can it was connected to, not entirely full but thankfully not empty. You already knew that, but it doesn't hurt to check.

Your brother's headless body sits on the fold up table. Still tied up and shaking ever so slightly. Your brother's SOUL floats before his ribcage, still blue and steady. 

You take another breath, determination flitting through your SOUL. "Okay, Let's Start." You murmur to yourself as you use one hand to steady your brother's body, gripping his shoulder while the other hand is holding the welding gun. "Vision Status: Zoom 150%." Your visor obeys your verbal command, zooming in close to the stop metal cervical vertebrae that wasn't attached to your brother. In the middle, the tightly packed metal wires that served as your brother's spinal cord glow faintly, the tips of the wires twitching and sparking lightly with your brother's magic. 

Those tips could connect into the small little sockets in your brother's neck, they were very important, acting essentially as your brother's nerves and had to be maintained at a fairly regular basis. Hence, the spinal maintenance. That and lots of other things that needed to be done- between the two of you, your brother had really set himself up with the prosthetic maintenance dealings in the end.

"Set Timer For Two Hours." In the corner of your vision, a timer appears then disappears.

You had two hours to go through the process. 

Prosthesis Papyrus could do a full spinal maintenance in two hours short and you would have to do it too.

The full spinal maintenance spanned from two to six hours depending. 

You could cut it down to an hour and a half if you didn't include the ribs but you were since you would have to do a full one. You weren't going to skip out your brother's ribs. They needed to be checked on as well. It wouldn't be as complicated as the spine, but they were connected to the spine and were obviously your brother's ribcage. Of course you were going to include them in the procedure. You had to.

If you didn't and set this aside, who knows what could happen-

You and your brother knew.

Which was why you were doing it in the first place.

You couldn't procrastinate on it, even if you very well could and almost wanted to.

It was best to do something like _this_ as soon as possible, to get it out of your way until next time. Which will hopefully, be a long while.

Your body accommodates to your needs- _Papyrus_ ' body accommodates to your needs, the vision enhancement not bothering your hand-eye coordination at all as you move the welder. The needle looks so much bigger now that your vision's enhanced to what it is. 

You press the needle against the tip of the wires- you ignore your brother's breath hitching and continue on forwards.

You can do this.

For you.

For your brother.

You can do this.

* * *

" _Darling,_ _I can show you where my love hides~ It's a heart beat on a hard drive~_ "

Wow, you've always imagined what kind of music that both Metaton and Napstablook would do together. The ending of Undertale had hinted something amazing and here you were, listening it to your heart's content. They were really good together and Metaton had a great voice, even if it sounded a bit robotic- no doubt because he was actually a robot.

_~~Your body twitches, just steps away from you on that table. Your brother hunches over and concentrated, he's muttering underneath his breath, he has two tools in his hands. Some needle thin tweezers and a small rod with a tiny fucking suction cup at the end. He's around your middle back.~~_

" _Honey, glamour’s got me out of my mind like a kill switch~ On my backside~_ " 

Music is something that comforted you since you were a kid. Be it the childish, musical tune of the cartoon show early in the morning, the orchestral music your foster mother would play throughout the house or the nonsensical humming you did quietly to either yourself or your brother. No matter what type of music it was, even if you disliked it in some way, you always found it comforting in the end. It's comforting now as you _~~try to~~_ relax where you are, overtaken by the music, trying to hum along. You're not too familiar with the song yet so it's a work in progress. 

~~_Your voice is shaky even while you're humming and your face is so distractingly wet._ ~~

" _I’m sorry but it’s for the greater good- Raise the stakes! Pick a fight! And these ratings might ignite, baby~!_ "

Sans, Prosthesis Sans at least, found comfort in music too. He'd heard a stray song from a radio at the beginning during some tests and from there, it just naturally escalated. He never liked the silence or the crying so filling it with music, music he'd make up on the fly, was ideal for him and Papyrus. And it got even better after they escaped and listened to _real_ music afterwards. Had things gone differently, you think he'd make a nice career in music.

~~_You wish things went differently. It was **your** fault you were like this._ ~~

" _You got a lot of nerve my friend- What day and age you think we’re living in?_ "

The song playing in the headphones was called Hard Drive, naturally it was by Metaton and Napstablook. Metaton apparently wrote a song about his encounter with Frisk and how it went while Napstablook supplied the rhythm and music. He was really a talented musician. You're glad he's made songs with Metaton, they sound good together.

~~_You're grasping at straws here. Your neck aches, your body jolts on the table, your brother is diligent but you want things to end so badly already. He's using the welding gun again, but with the tweezers. Lower end of your back._ ~~

Hahaha, man, you're thinking about yesterday now and that funny little moment when Red- 

Red-

~~_There's a prickling sensation at the back of your throat, the edge of your neck, as your body flails uselessly on the metal table. Your brother curses but keeps working after holding down your arching spine, it sparks slightly and audibly sounds of metallic pops._~~

Red did something funny. He-

_Hahahahahaha-_

Oh the song ended already?

That was quick, you hadn't noticed. Or actually you did! Look, the next song was coming up!

~~_You stare listlessly at the wall, sockets empty and tears sluggishly crawling down your face. Your brother's flipping your body now, your SOUL is still a comforting blue. You still ache._ ~~

_Hmmmhhmmmhmhmmmhmmmmhmm..._

You wonder if your brother was going to buy an instrument.

It's been a long while since he's played anything, his last one was broken and you were both too broke to replace it. You were planning to buy him one for his birthday but... You know what.

You're _still_ going to buy him an instrument. You'd have to find a way to make money or possibly loan some from the others but, you'd get your brother something nice. 

_It's the least you could after all._

~~_What with you being a useless **crybaby loser who can't handle their head being separated from their body.**_ ~~

Time- it either blurred together or flew by. Either way, time passed and you find yourself no longer relaxing on a pillow. The headphones are still squarely on your skull but, your brother's palms are on your face again.

Oh.

Has it really gone by that fast? It had taken so long though. 

You're confused.

Your brother's mouth is moving, but you can't hear him. You just hum tiredly in response.

_**Shhhfff-ICK-K!** _

You gasp, your _neck-_ that had _hurt_ but-

You're back on your body. Your head was back on your shoulders, attached firmly.

Your SOUL flickers white as your brother's comforting magic disappears. 

"i'm... back?" You look up at your brother with wide eyes, he smiles at you. Gently. And takes off the very loud headphones. You can finally hear him, though it takes a bit to register since you've been listening to nothing but loud music for the past- you don't fucking know.

"I Told You I Wouldn't Leave You Like That. You Are Fine Brother, See? Nothing To Be Afraid Of Anymore." He gently, pulls you into a hug as you process it all.

Your back feels _great_ , there were some aches, your neck definitely ached but it was all quickly disappearing. The dread and fear that haunted you throughout the time you'd just been a head dissipates, overcome by relief and sheer utter _joy_ \- "b-bro-i-hhhaaa-" If you weren't so emotional right now. You'd be very embarrassed by the fact you were crying so hard. _Again_.

But you were crying _and_ hugging your brother.

With both arms.

You were back on your body. Head attached, feeling better than ever as the aches were quickly disappearing. 

Your brother lets you cry into his shirt. Lets you cling tightly to him and sob. Lets you stay clinging to him as he stands up. Lets you shift into his arms so he can carry you and lay you on his bed. He lets you lay down as you collapse, so emotionally, mentally and somewhat physically exhausted.

You're finally drifting off into sleep. "thanks... bro..." Best little brother, ever.

You could always trust your little brother. 

No matter what.

* * *

As Chine drifted off into sleep, Visor sighed in relief even as the back of his head began to pulse slightly.

His brother lays on his side, facing the other side of the bed, his newly maintained spine is quickly being put to use as he curls up. Visor watches the spine curl, tiredly thinking of the wires underneath the metal and how they could be stretching right now and-

He was done.

He had _done it_.

"Heh, Chalk That Up For A Win." Visor murmured to himself, tiredly rubbing his face, screen and all. If he was any more energetic, he'd be screaming- or maybe not. His brother was sleeping after all.

Which reminded him...

_Knock knock_

"Coming." Sluggishly, he dragged himself to the door. Unlocking it and opening it. "Yes? Ah Stretch, Axe. Hello. What Do You Need?" Visor asked, glancing between the two skeletons. "Ah Right, Stretch. I'll Give You The Fold Up Table Back Now. Hold On-" He moves away from the door, remembering a second too late that-

"'s fine visor i- _chine?_ " Stretch's voice of disbelief has Visor wincing.

" _oh fuck._ " Axe's following murmur doesn't help.

Chine sleeps on obliviously, Stretch and Axe staring at his naked upper torso with wide, shocked faces that cycle through a _lot_ of emotions and thoughts.

Visor on the other hand, curses himself.

Crap.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> congratulations! congratulations! congratulations!  
> you've achieved; FIRST SPINAL MAINTENANCE!  
> chine's achieved; MORE TRAUMA!  
> visor's achieve; SPINAL EXPERTISE _AND_ MORE TRAUMA!  
> anyway, the lyrics used is indeed called [Hard Drive](https://youtu.be/rdSXXwkuaT0), a fansong about Metaton by Fandroid Music Group. 
> 
> but yeah, here's the spinal maintenance that you've all been waiting for! i sure hope it was worth the wait and hype! i'd like to think so.  
> also to all of you who were hoping for reactions from the skeletons about chine's spine and ribcage; you're welcome ( dw there's more to come)  
> to all of you who were hoping for reactions from the skeletons about chine's spinal maintenance; better luck next time buds
> 
> tempting as it was to let them know now about the maintenance in all it's entirety, i figured it'd be better to wait for a greater opportunity >;)  
> also i would've written more but its already past my goal of 4-5k and i'm pretty tired and i also want to update this... so yeah, here ya go.
> 
> at any rate, i hope you enjoyed, leave a comment if you'd like and i'll see you next chapter ;)

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed  
> lets see where this goes  
> no promises on whatll happen  
> i might continue or maybe not  
> we'll see on how this fairs out

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Parallel Lines](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26151178) by [xMidnightSun](https://archiveofourown.org/users/xMidnightSun/pseuds/xMidnightSun)
  * [Preconceived Notions](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26811517) by [Betaaa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Betaaa/pseuds/Betaaa)
  * [Far From Home](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27470683) by [ohitsthatguy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohitsthatguy/pseuds/ohitsthatguy)
  * [Survival of the Fittest](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26964460) by [ReineVix](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReineVix/pseuds/ReineVix)




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